Curator’s Corner

Museum, research, and collection updates from Dr. José H. Leal, plus Shell of the Week, which highlights a different species every other Friday. Most Shells of the Week are found in Southwest Florida.

Dr. José H. Leal serves as the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium’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.

The Gills of Bivalves

Did you know that the gills of mollusks are called ctenidia? Ctenidia (singular ctenidium) consist of filaments arranged in comb- or feather-like structures. In aquatic mollusks, the ctenidia are the main respiratory organs, absorbing oxygen dissolved in the water for the metabolic functions of those animals.The vast majority of bivalves are filter-feeding species: they strain the water to capture their food, usually microalgae or other types of microorganisms. In an interesting twist of evoluti

The Florida Regal Doris

Felimare picta is one of the nudibranch sea slugs (shell-less gastropods with external gills) found offshore along Sanibel Island and other parts of Southwest Florida. Reaching 13 cm (about 5.1 inches), it is one of the largest nudibranch species in the western Atlantic Ocean. It is also one of the most attractive, showing an elegant color pattern of yellow lines and elliptical markings against a dark blue, sometimes almost black, background. The gills are visible as a set of feather-like projec

Shell of the Week: The Measled Cowrie

Macrocypraea zebra is one of the few species of cowries found in the western Atlantic. Its shell may grow to 133 mm (inches). The species has a very large latitudinal (north to south) distribution, occurring from North Carolina in the USA to Santa Catarina State in Brazil. The Measled Cowrie has a distinctive color pattern of white spots superimposed on an underlying pattern of spiral bands. The spiral bands are seen clearly in images B and C (below), which show shells at two different juvenile

2023 Bivalves Workshop: A Success Story

On November 8-10, I taught the 2023 Marine Bivalves workshop, promoted by the Florida Association of Aquatic Biologists (FAB) at the University of Tampa’s Marine Science Field Station, in Tampa. The workshop dealt with the natural history and identification of local marine bivalve mollusks. The 2.5-day event was attended by marine biologists from, among other institutions, the University of Tampa, University of South Florida, United States Geological Survey, and Smithsonian Marine Station at For

Shell of the Week: The White-spot Dove Snail

Mitrella ocellata is a small (13 mm, or 0.5 inch) marine snail from the dove snail family Columbellidae. Its shell shows a color pattern of white spots set on a chestnut-brown background, and a set of denticles on the outer shell lip. The species is found in the tropical western Atlantic Ocean from east Florida to southeastern Brazil. The species is found also on the mid-Atlantic oceanic islands of Trindade, Ascension, and Santa Helena. Illustration by James F. Kelly.#mitrellaocellata #mwhitespo

Shell of the Week: The Gulf Stream Miter

Isara straminea is a predatory gastropod of the miter family Mitridae that reaches 30 mm (about 1.2 inches). The species is found in relatively shallow water from off North Carolina, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, south to southeastern Brazil. The shell has a characteristic sculpture of revolving spiral cords, and is usually white or white with large, irregular light-brown spots. The illustration was created by Chris Kovaz for the Museum’s Digital Imaging Project.#isarastraminea #gulfstreammiter #mi

Florida United Malacologists 2024

Save the Date! The next meeting of Florida United Malacologists (FUM) will take place on Sanibel Island, Florida, on Saturday, April 13, 2024. The one-day gathering brings together researchers, collectors, students, citizen scientists, and enthusiasts interested in a broad range of mollusk-related topics. The event is free for registrants, but you must be registered to attend. Registration will start on January 1st, 2024. Read more about previous FUM events here. We hope to see you at FUM 2024!

Here to Stay!

Since the discovery of the Thrush Cowrie, Naria turdus, in Florida in December 2022*, several other findings of the species have been informally reported for the east coast of Florida, most between Palm Beach County and Key West in the lower Florida Keys. The Thrush Cowrie originates from the Red Sea and western Indian Ocean, and had been introduced to the Mediterranean and Caribbean seas. One of the most recent sightings of the species took place in the same general area as that of the first fi

a model squid

Giant Squid Body Lift

One of the first tangible results of our renovation efforts at the National Shell Museum was the makeover of our Giant Squid model. The reduced-size replica of Architeuthis dux was hanging from the very tall ceiling of the Great Hall of Shells, probably too high for proper enjoyment, as visitors had to bend their necks to see the squid in its full glory. The model was restored by exhibit designer Raymond Rawls, of Gainesville, Florida. Raymond repaired arms and tentacles, applied new coats of (m

Shell of the Week: The Jupiter Dondice

At 10 mm in length (a little less than 0.5 inch), the Jupiter Dondice, Dondice jupiteriensis García-Mendez, Padula, and Valdés, 2022, is one of the smallest (and most attractive) local species of nudibranchs (shell-less gastropods). The Jupiter Dondice has “moustache-like,” oral tentacles (left on image.) These tentacles can reach more than half the slug’s body length! The rhinophores, sensorial projections behind the oral tentacles, have irregular arrangements of rings on their upper half. The