Thank you to all who participated in the eleventh meeting of Florida United Malacologists last Saturday, February 15, at the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. The event was the best attended since its inception, with 73 registrants checking in. The event took place in the newly renovated auditorium on the second floor of the Museum. Fifteen presenters kept the audience on their toes via a wide range of topics, including the Museum's new Beyond Shells living exhibits, how to keep octopuses "octopied" (in the new living displays), the age of reproduction in Banded Tulips and Lightning Whelks, estimating the age of Horse Conchs, photographing micromollusks, and the evolution of Peanut Snails (genus Cerion), to name just a few.
Florida United Malacologists follows the pattern of similar, annual informal gatherings such as BAM (Bay Area Malacologists), SCUM (Southern California United Malacologists), MAM (Mid-Atlantic Malacologists), and OVUM (Ohio Valley United Malacologists). The one-day gathering brings together researchers, collectors, citizen scientists, and students interested in a broad swath of mollusk-related topics.
The first FUM took place at the National Shell Museum in 2010, following an idea from Alan Gettleman and Phyllis Diegel. Since then, FUM has circulated among the Museum, the Florida Museum of Natural History (Gainesville), University of South Florida (Tampa), and Stetson College (Deland). We'll soon announce the venue of FUM 2021. Download the FUM 2020 Program and Abstracts here.