Sanibel Shells from January 2014

                           
                 A portion of the shells I found the first day on a January trip to Sanibel Island, Florida

There are shark's eyes, tellins, kitten paws,scallops ceriths, augers, wormies, some coral, and different kinds of cones and conchs.

                                               Twisted and worn portion of shell on the beach

I collected a lot of imperfect shells on the beach. Some are worn away by the action of waves and water
and consequentially are smooth and almost polished. Some are broken. Both kinds often show the internal architecture of the shells. Many bivalves have holes that are round and just perfect for stringing.These holes are made by drill or auger shells that cut through the shell to consume the occupant. Using a driftwood stick, these made a mobile that is a perfect souvenir from the beach.