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UPCOMING SHELL SHOWS

SARASOTA SHELL SHOW
The Sarasota Shell Show will be held Feb. 17-19 at the Manatee County Convention Center in Palmetto. This was a new venue for us last year and proved to be a great place for a show. Setup is Friday Feb 17 in the morning, and we are open to the public in the afternoon until 5:00, when judging will commence.

If you need a place to stay we may be able to find you one with one of our members, or there are several hotels near I75 and on the road to the Convention Center you may choose from.

Rules and entry forms are available on the clubs web.

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Peggy Williams, Scientific chairman

SANIBEL SHELL SHOW

Just wanted to let you all know that the 2012 Rules, Entry Forms, and all information about the 75th Sanibel Shell Show are now ready and available on our web site which is: Sanibelcaptivashellclub.com

Our show is celebrating this major milestone, and we would love for you all to come see what makes our show so great. Plan your vacation for March 1 ,2, and 3, 2012 and come join in our festivities.

Look forward to seeing you all there. Anne Joffe, Show Chair.

<http://sanibelcaptivashellclub.com/SanCap_shellshow.html>.

MARCO ISLAND SHELL SHOW

2012 Marco Island Shell Show – March 8, 9, 10, 2012 – Times: 10:00 – 4:00 p.m.
United Church of Marco
320 N. Barfield Dr.
Marco Island, FL 34145

Show Entry Forms on Website – www.marcoshellclub.com

PHILADELPHIA SHELL CLUB SHOW

Only two weeks have passed and already forlorn souls are casting sidelong glances at their 2012 calendars. “When”, they say, “when oh when will the next Philadelphia Shell Show be? Our lives are a meaningless travesty without it”. Well, now it can be told – the 2012 show will be on October 20 and 21, 2012. Prime red-leaf season here in America’s finest city, and nicely timed for all your seasonal shopping. More news to come, but for now mark your calendars and get busy on baroque new exhibits that will stagger humanity.

Paul Callomon Chairman, 2012 Philadelphia Shell Show

ASTRONAUT TRAIL SHELL CLUB SHOW

Now that the North Carolina and Philadelphia Shell Shows are pleasant memories, we look forward to the first U.S. show of the 2012 year.  The Astronaut Trail Shell Club invites you to participate in our 32nd annual shell Festival themed “Shelling Memories” Saturday and Sunday, January 14-15, 2012.  Set up and judging on lucky Friday, January 13th.

The location is the Melbourne Auditorium, 625 E.  Hibiscus Ave, Melbourne, FL, which is a large and well lit facility.  We have one of the largest number of shell dealer and shell related products of any U.S. club shell show.

We offer the Conchologists of America (COA), DuPont, and Masters Trophies. Also an award in memory for our long time resident and member Dr. R. Tucker will be presented. We also have club trophies including  the Abbott for self collected; Fossil Trophy; Junior Trophy; Shell of Show; Self Collected Shell of Show; Florida Self-Collected Shell of Show; and many specialized artistic awards including a Premium Arts and Craft Trophy for exhibits that have already won a major award.

An awards banquet and program will be on Friday evening, January 13 (details to be provided later). There are several recommended hotels close by and many, many restaurants including a “Shells”. So for those up north, plan to spend part of January away from the snow and enjoy the Space Coast of Florida.

Please contact me for any questions at lychee@cfl.rr.com or (321) 536-2896.

Entry forms, rules are also available on our website:

http://home.netcom.com/~ejpower/ruleindex.html.  Information will be sent to the Florida shell clubs for which I had addresses.

Alan Gettleman, Show Chairman

SHELL OF THE MONTH – JANUARY 2012

The harps are among the most elegant and beautiful of all sea shells. They have a natural gloss, are finely sculptured, have detailed patterns and colored in a palette of color coordinated shades. The harps are also among the most difficult of shells to distinguish, they all look very much the same. Even the scientists who described them had trouble in recognizing them resulting in multiple names. To this day collectors and dealers remained confused as what the proper nomenclature is.

At first glance the only difference one will see is small, medium and large size, but look closer and study the details to see all that three are distinct.  The large shell is Harps major, Roding, 1798. The middle shell is Harpa harpa, Linne 1758 and the small one is a Harpa amouretta, Roding 1798.

The harps are tropical sand dwellers usually found in fairly shallow water. Most species are Indo-Pacific though one inhabits the west cost of Central America and a second the east coast of Africa.  Our three specimens come from Viet-Nam, the Philippines and Micronesia respectively. The first two are average size while the amouretta is from a dwarf population. The Harpa harpa is 60mm.

HOLIDAY PARTY – ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW

Yes, it actually that time of year again. And the date will be our regular December meeting date which is December 14th.  The Fishers had a sign-up sheet at the November meeting so you can let the committee know which of your delicious recipes you will honor us with.  We do ask two things of you:  when you bring your dish PLEASE bring a serving utensil for it, and if you are bringing an appetizer be there by 6:00 PM.  If you were unable to attend the November meeting and have not been called by the Committee, please call the Fishers at 561-306-4998 or email them at tonifisher2004@yahoo.com. The club will supply the meat as usual.  Also we will have the fun part – the gift exchange / Chinese auction.  Please keep the value of your gift from between $15 – $20 and DO NOT WRAP THEM.  Place them in a gift bag which you can cover over with tissue of a single piece of tape.  This will greatly speed up the “process”. Shells and shell related items are what the items should be, although bottled beverages are acceptable.  Basic rule:  bring something that YOU would like if you won it.  This is and always has been one of the best ways to get to know your fellow members so everyone is encouraged to attend…..you would be foolish not to!

WAREHOUSE DAY 2011

Warehouse Day 2011! Fourteen club members showed up for our annual ‘clean up and organize the warehouse’ day…… getting ready for the 2012 Broward Shell Show. Thanks to a few large donations this year, the club sales tables will be loaded with beautiful shells, shellcraft material, jewelry and shellcraft including Bob Pace’s hand-crafted critters (made from shells, of course)!  The finished product. Fantastic job everyone…….THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!  Cindy Murfey did an incredible job of organizing and we got rid of about 25 boxes in the warehouse!!!

2011 HOLIDAY PARTY

Yes, it actually that time of year again. And the date will be our regular December meeting date which is December 14th.  The Fishers will have a sign-up sheet at the November meeting so you can let the committee know which of your delicious recipes you will honor us with.  The club will supply the meat as usual.  Also we will have the fun part – the gift exchange, and details on that will appear in the December issue.  Just remember to keep the cost under $20 and shell and shell related items are what the items should be, although food and wine are acceptable.  This is one the most fun activities the club has all year so do be a part of it!

BLOWING ROCKS FIELD TRIP – FANTASTICO!

This past October we were literally treated to a great field trip which was provided by Doug & Toni Fisher. Let’s put it this way….that beach put Sanibel to shame and members Juan Marrero, Richard Sedlak, Heather, Joy, The Fishers, Patty Springborn and her two sisters, the Alvos, the Leidi Family, the Paces and Anthony Mestiski took advantage of the treasures.  The ocean started to pick up so the signature Blowing Rocks did their “performance” under the cloudy skies – perfect shelling weather, although snorkeling was out of the question.

Among the shells found, in addition to sea beans and other drift goodies were: The now “famous” Gelagna succincta – Lesser Girdled Triton – a Pacific Shell now showing up in the Atlantic!, Turbo castanea – Chestnut Turban, Nerita peloronta – Bleeding Tooth, Strombus raninus – Hawkwing Conch, Strombus gigas – Queen Conch, Cypraea cervus – Atlantic Deer Cowrie, Cypraea zebra – Measled Cowrie, Cypraea acicularis – Atlantic Yellow Cowrie, Trivia pediculus – Coffee Bean Trivia, Trivia suffuse – Suffuse Trivia, Cassis tuberosa and madagascariensis – the King and Queen helmets (lip pieces only), Phalium granulatum – Scotch Bonnet, Modulus modulus – Atlantic Modulus, Cymatium martinianum – Atlantic Hairy Triton, Astraea tuber – Green Star Shell, Glycymeris spectralis – Bittersweet Clam, Chichoreus florifer – Lace Murex, Stramonita rustica – Rustic Rock Shell, Tonna maculata and galea – Atlantic Partridge and Giant Tun Shell – large pieces, Pollia tincta – Tinted Cantharus, Fasciolaria tulipa – True Tulip, Oliva sayana – Lettered Olive, Conus mus – Mouse Cone, Arca zebra – Turkey Wing, Arca species, Atringa rigida – Stiff Pen Shell, Plicatula gibbosa – Atlantic Kitten’s Paw, Glycymeris species, Chlamys sentis – Sentis Scallop, Argopecten gibbus – Calico Scallop, Lyropecten nodosus – Lion’s Paw (halves), Trachycardium muricatum – Yellow Cockle, Globivenus rigida – Rigid Venus,  Macrocallista maculata – Calico Clam, Crepidula fornicata – Common Atlantic Slipper, Distorsio clathrata – Atlantic Distorsio, Busycon contrarium – Lightning Whelk, Melongena corona – Crown Conch, Polinices duplicata – Shark’s Eye ( some HUGE pieces as well), Murex pomum – Apple Murex, Laevicardium robustum – Giant Atlantic Cockle and Chione intapurpurea – Lady-In-Waiting Venus.  Please note that most of the bivalves were found as single valves.

SHELL OF THE MONTH – NOVEMBER 2011

Conus bengalensis, Okutani,1968
“The Bengal Cone”
trawled by fisherman 100m
muddy sand bottom with rubble
Andaman Sea, off Phuket, Thailand 2010
One has to wonder where this shell was hiding for so long as it was not known until 1968. The Bengal Cone is a member of the group of textile cones, which many consider the most beautiful of all shells. It is very similar to Conus gloriamaris and possibly confused. It is large, elongate, glossy and of course tented. There are two populations of Conus bengalensis. The first is from its namesake location, India’s Bay of Bengal. The other is from the Andaman Sea off the coast of Thailand. The Andaman Sea populations tend to have an elongated tapering spire giving the shell an elegant appearance. Our shell of the month is just such a specimen. The India populations commonly have a compressed spire and sometimes slightly concave sides. As with most large cone shells, growth comes in spurts resulting in growth lines running the length of the shell. Looking closely at this specimen one can see where where growth stopped and started. Many specimens have ugly scars where breaks in the shell has healed, not this one. Our specimen is about 93mm is length making it average in size, fully adult and with a mature thick lip. It would sell for $50-70 at retail. Larger specimens can easily bring double the price.

SHELL OF THE MONTH – OCTOBER 2011

CAMAENIDEA

This month we have a pair of specimens, left and right handed, (dextral and sinistral) of an Indonesian tree snail that favors coffee leaves as it habitat. Both specimens are 41 and were recently named.

Amphidromus sekincauensis, Dhama 2007
In coffee plantation, on coffee leaves
Mount Sincau, North Lampung
South Sumatra, Indonesia
November 2008

WAREHOUSE CLEAN-UP PARTY, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5

Mark Saturday, November 5th as the date when we will all gather at the Shell Club warehouse to get it organized for the upcoming Shell Show season.  Plan on arriving about 9:30 AM and for those not familiar as to the location of the warehouse in Pompano please call Nancy Galdo at 305-531-0036 for directions.  Bring some water and snacks if you desire.  We will go out to lunch after we have finished.  The more there are the faster we will get done!