Lectures
Recent Research and Revelations at the Shell Museum & Aquarium
Dr. José H. Leal, Science Director and Curator, and Jorden Falker, Associate Director of Education
Thursday, July 24, 5:30pm, via Zoom
As the only museum and aquarium devoted primarily to shells and mollusks, the Museum is in a unique position to observe, document, and share previously unknown characteristics of mollusks and their habitats, and baseline studies of their populations.
In this talk, Dr. Leal and Jorden Falker share recent research and findings the Museum is involved with, including first-time observation of a threatening condition in Horse Conchs, the regional spread of the invasive Thrush Cowrie, assessments of local marine and land mollusk distributions, and more. Attendees will learn the latest and see some of the important work that goes on behind the scenes at the Museum.
South Florida’s Seasonal Seas
Gabriel Jensen, Photographer and Photo-Naturalist
Thursday, August 21, 5:30pm, via Zoom
From the surface, the ocean looks the same to us humans year-round. But beneath the waves, the changing seasons bring forth epic underwater migrations and behaviors of marine life of all shapes and sizes, from mollusks to fish, sea turtles, sharks, groupers, and more.
By utilizing international award-winning photographs taken during thousands of hours underwater, Gabriel Jensen uses anecdotes of adventure paired with population data to tell the story of South Florida’s underwater seasons, what they mean for marine animals, and why it matters.
Gabriel is a photographer, biochemist, and photo-naturalist whose images of underwater microfauna have been featured by NOAA, BBC, Smithsonian Magazine, and National Geographic among others. His photographs of nudibranchs are the focus of a new exhibition Brilliant Colors of the Sea: Nudibranchs and Their Relatives, now on view at the Bailey-Matthews National Shells Museum & Aquarium.
What Can Oysters Tell Us About the Restoration of the Everglades?
Stephen Geiger, Ph.D., Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission
Thursday, September 18, 5:30pm, via Zoom
Assessing the success of ongoing efforts to restore the Florida Everglades to a more balanced ecosystem relies on a wide range of metrics. Oysters are mollusks that filter the water around them to feed, and oyster species in the Everglades are thus good indicators of water quality there and progress being made in Everglades restoration.
This talk will introduce the biology of oysters and explain the environmental conditions that allow them to thrive and why they are a good metric for water quality. Dr. Geiger will also outline some of the threats to oysters and provide an overview of some of the results and changes that scientists have observed in oyster populations in the Florida Everglades.
Dr. Geiger is a Research Scientist studying Molluscan Fisheries/Marine Fisheries Biology at the Fish & Wildlife Research Institute of the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission. His decades of research in Florida have explored oyster and bay scallop restoration and monitoring, gastropod abundance and distribution, and beach renourishment, among other subjects.
This presentation is made possible by the Sam and Francis Bailey Clean Water Education Center.
Gulf Seafood: Sustaining Wildlife and Our Way of Life
John Fallon, Audubon Nature Institute
Thursday, October 16, 5:30pm, via Zoom
The Gulf is home to the second largest commercial fishery in the United States, and the seafood industry in the region provides tens of thousands of jobs and generates billions in economic impact annually. However, to ensure the seafood we love and rely upon is around for generations to come it takes good science, conservation, policy, and collaboration.
Join this talk, held during National Seafood Month, to learn about what makes Gulf seafood sustainable, the challenges facing fisheries in the region, and what you can do to support your local seafood industry.
John Fallon is Director of Sustainability and Coastal Conservation Initiatives at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans. For over 15 years John’s work has built programs to strengthen fisheries and sustainable seafood supply chains in the Gulf region.
Archive of Online Lectures
Nov 14, 2024 — Carrier Shells: Nature’s Original Shell Collectors. By Gary Kidder, Collections Manager for Malacology and Inventory, Houston Museum of Natural Science. Watch recording >>
Sep 19, 2024 — Towards a New Great Hall of Shells. By José H. Leal, Ph.D., Science Director and Curator, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium and Sam Ankerson, Executive Director, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium. Watch recording >>
Aug 22, 2024 — Ecological and Historical Studies on Land Snails: Tiger Snails and Glacial History. By Dr. Timothy Pearce, Assistant Curator, Mollusks, Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Watch recording >>
Oct 12, 2023 — The Charisma of Cowries. Dr. José H. Leal, Ph.D., Science Director and Curator, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Sep 14, 2023 — Renewal: The Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum One Year After Hurricane Ian. By Sam Ankerson, Executive Director, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Aug 17, 2023 — The Secret and Endangered Lives of Freshwater Mussels. By Dr. John Pfeiffer, Curator of Bivalvia, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Watch recording >>
Jul 13, 2023 — Hawaiian Land Snails: Lessons in Conservation, Curation, and Research. By Dr. Norine Yeung, Malacology Curator, Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. Watch recording >>
May 17, 2023 — Micromollusks: The Allure of Small Size. By José H. Leal, Ph.D., Science Director and Curator, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Apr 20, 2023 — The Journey to One Billion Oysters with One Million New Yorkers. By Pete Malinowski, Executive Director of Billion Oyster Project. Watch
recording >>
Mar 23, 2023 — Exploring the Oceans for Public Television. By Alexa Elliott, Creator and Producer of PBS Program Changing Seas. Watch recording >>
Feb 15, 2023 — Renovating the George W. Strake Hall of Malacology, From Bottom to Top. By Tina Petway, Associate Curator of Malacology, Houston Museum of Natural Science. Watch recording >>
Jan 19, 2023 — Land Snails in Los Angeles: An Experiment in Urban Citizen Science. By Dr. Jann Elizabeth Vendetti, Associate Curator and Twila Bratcher Chair in Malacology Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Watch recording >>
Nov 10, 2022 — Hurricanes and Mollusks. By Dr. José H. Leal, Science Director and Curator Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Sep 14, 2022 — Saving the Queen of the Sea: Queen Conch Conservation Aquaculture. By Megan Davis, Ph.D., Research Professor, Aquaculture and Stock Enhancement Program Florida Atlantic University Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. Watch recording >>
Aug 11, 2022 — Mobilizing Millions of Mollusks of the Eastern Seaboard. By Rüdiger Bieler, PhD, Curator of Invertebrates Field Museum of Natural History; and José H. Leal, PhD, Science Director and Curator Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Jul 13, 2022 — Let’s Get Kraken: Cephalopods Coast to Coast. By Bret Grasse, Manager of Cephalopod Operations Marine Biological Laboratories (Woods Hole, MA). Watch recording >>
Jun 16, 2022 — Spot the Mollusk! By Rebecca Mensch, Senior Marine Biologist Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Oct 20, 2021 — Spooky Mollusks and Other Evils of the Deep: A Halloween Special. By José H. Leal, Ph.D., Science Director and Curator, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Sep 28, 2021 — Shell Dressed: Seashells in Fashion and Jewelry. By Jean M. Burks, Curator Emerita, Shelburne Museum, and Kory Rogers, Francie and John Downing Senior Curator of American Art, Shelburne Museum. Watch recording >>
Sep 16, 2021 — Why Am I Growing Giant Clams in the Middle of the Arizona Desert? By Dan Killam, Ph.D., Biosphere 2, University of Arizona. Watch recording >>
Aug 24, 2021 — 8,000 Years of Shells in the American Southeast: Archaeological Insights on the Ecology, Diet, Architecture, and Ritual of Ancient Native Americans. By Kenneth E. Sassaman, Hyatt and Cici Brown Professor of Florida Archaeology, University of Florida. Watch recording >>
Jul 27, 2021 — Supersized Squid. By Rebecca Mensch, Senior Marine Biologist, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Jul 13, 2021 — Oysters: A Crystal Ball for Water Quality in Southwest Florida. By Melissa A. May, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Marine Biology, Florida Gulf Coast University. Watch recording >>
Jun 29, 2021 — Curator’s Choice: New Photographs of Extraordinary Shells, and the Digital Imaging Project at the National Shell Museum. By José H. Leal, Ph.D., Science Director and Curator, Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. Watch recording >>
Jun 15, 2021 — Artistic Adaptations: 2,000 Years of Seashells in Art. By Jean M. Burks, Curator Emerita, Shelburne Museum, and Kory Rogers, Francie and John Downing Senior Curator of American Art, Shelburne Museum. Watch recording >>