Curator's Corner

Museum, research, and collection updates from Dr. José H. Leal, plus Shell of the Week, which highlights a different species every Friday. Most Shells of the Week—but not all—are found in Southwest Florida.

Dr. José H. Leal serves as the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum’s Science Director and Curator. He received his Ph.D. in Marine Biology and Fisheries from the University of Miami and has served at the Museum since 1996. Under his leadership, the Museum was awarded its first accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums in 2010.

José H. Leal

Nov 12, 2021

Shell of the Week: The Flame Cone

The Flame Cone, Conasprella delessertii Récluz, 1843 is found from North Carolina south to both sides of Florida and in the Gulf of Mexico to the Yucatan Peninsula. The species is known also as Delessert’s Cone or Sozon’s Cone. Alan Kohn, in his book on cone snails from the southeastern U.S. and Caribbean, observed that the species “ranges as far north on the Atlantic coast of the United States as any other Conus species.” It reaches 100 mm (about 4 inches), and the color pat

José H. Leal

Oct 29, 2021

Shell of the Week: The Mace Cone

Reaching 40 mm in size, Conasprella armiger (Crosse, 1858), is one of the most attractive cone snails in the tropical western Atlantic. The species has been found in depths between 35 and 227 m (115 and 745 feet). Its shell has a very narrow anterior region and canal, which makes look like the medieval weapon that gives the species its common name. #conasprellaarmiger #conidae #macecone #keywest

José H. Leal

Oct 12, 2018

The Dusky Cone

The Dusky Cone, Conasprella stearnsii (Conrad, 1869) is one of three locally found species of cone snails, family Conidae. The species reaches about 25 mm (one inch), with the shell spire usually encompassing 1/3 of the shell length, and the entire shell is covered with raised spiral lines. The color pattern on the shell is very variable, usually with combinations of brown markings of different intensities set against a whitish background. Most cone snails feed on marine worm

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Curator's Corner