Archive for Lion’s Paw
Home Sweet Blind Pass Home
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Blind Pass is loooaaaded with shells! And yes, those are 2 LION’S PAWS that were found this morning by Peg and Janet on the pass side of the jetty rocks as the tide was going out.
I woke up this morning to 47 degree weather (which is normally good shelling weather)… I was torn! Do I run down to Blind Pass to see if there are any shells that washed in since I haven’t been to the beach since I got back from our vacation to Turks & Caicos? Or do I finish my post about the details of our trip to answer all the comments on my last few post? Ack! Sorry! I couldn’t help myself! I had to do it. I had to go shelling.
But I promise I’ll answer your questions about accommodations and the rest of our trip… hopefully this afternoon.
Oh and FYI I am judging the Sarasota Shell Show this weekend so if you are anywhere in that area, please come by and see me. I’d love to meet you! Click on the next image to get the details…
CShells Sees Seashells By The Seashore
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CShells sees seashells by the seashore. She snagged this sweet LIONS PAW scallop shell with her seashell sifter when she saw it on Sanibel this week.
CShells really slayed Sanibel when husband Richard reaped rewards of reeling in a remarkable SCOTCH RONNET (Okay, it’s a BONNET, but it’s funnier with the “r” ! Just go with it 
)
Richard recognized its round richness in the rise of the wrack line.
Congratshellations Richard and CShells! You scored the shells!
PS- HAPPY HOLIDAY SALE!
Get iLove Shelling 2013 calendar, tees, mugs, Christmas ornaments and more at 15% off $50 through 12/10 using promo code SHOPUP by clicking HERE
Snorkeling Sanibel’s Out Islands
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We spent hours boating from Fort Myers Beach to the outer islands of Sanibel this weekend. I felt like we were on vacation! The first island we pulled up to I found this nice sized WENTLETRAP…
It was resting in a nest of sea weeds and SARGASSUM.
Okay, I’ll fess up. Clark and I weren’t really looking for WENTLETRAPS but it was a nice surprise. We were actually looking for a LION”S PAW. “Why”, you ask? Because we wanted to find this LIONS PAW’s brother or sister…. or better yet, the granddaddy!
It’s a beauty, right? Did you see that all of the knuckles are in tact? Saweeeet! Captain Brian found this awesome LION’S PAW on Cayo Costa on Friday. Is this a happy face or what! Congrats Brian!
So we looked high and low for even a piece of one…
While on Cayo Costa, we met Anna (Indiana) shelling the beach with a bag full of shells tied to her walking stick…
She had a beautiful collection of shells ranging from SAND DOLLARS to that excellent yellow HORSE CONCH.
Now who wouldn’t be happy with this collection? She found ANGEL WINGS, TRUE TULIPS, TURBANS, a NUTMEG, SHARK’S EYE, LIGHTNING WHELK and a cute twisted WORMIE.
Clark found one of these live ARROWHEAD SAND DOLLARS floating in the current then saw the other one close by. We have found dead ARROWHEADS before but neither of us has ever seen live ones like this. They are beautiful! Clark put them back in the water right after I snapped this photo to keep them nice and healthy.
Well, we didn’t find LION”S PAW and the water clarity was a little cloudy but after seeing so many SAND DOLLARS, I put on my mask and snorkel to see what else I could find in the water. Take a few good breaths and get used to the water so you can go on my snorkeling vacation with me. Here we go!
PS- Next post I’ll show you lots of MANATEES that we saw this weekend! I love those SEA COWS!
Sanibel Shelling Report
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The shells were bubbling up in patches around the islands this week. On the east end of Sanibel at the Lighthouse Beach, Clark found an awesome ALBINO FIGHTING CONCH. You can tell this shell didn’t turn white from being old and sun bleached because it is still glossy. It may look like it has a little scum on it but that yellowish stuff is the periostracum which is like a skin that will scrap right off with your thumb nail. Those are the signs that it is a true ALBINO.
See how glossy it is? Okay, this side (the aperture) has some scum on it (not just the periostracum) but I’m sure you can still see this shell never had color to it.
Most of the shells were alive at the Lighthouse beach but Sharon and Pierre (from Curacao Island!) and her mom Irene (from Holland!) were happy seeing all of the wonders of our sea life and found a few keeper shells as well…
But hold on to your sun hats, folks! Maria D. posted this on the i Love Shelling Facebook page…. she found 3 ALPHABET CONES this week! She said she found them mid island around the Island Inn.
Then Jen L. posted this awesome photo of the shells her family found at Bowman’s Beach. She found this unbelievable LION’S PAW! Wow, it looks like all of the knuckles are still in tact! Her dad Tim found the ANGEL WING and her mom Joanne found the huge FLAT SCALLOP. Nice finds, Linnan family!
My friend Susie (a long time Sanibel resident) still gets excited to find a FIGHTING CONCH…
She couldn’t wait to show me all the other colorful shells she found. See? After years of living on the island, the beach still delivers simple happiness…
I even heard that Bind Pass Sanibel was still delivering too but after seeing these shells and what shelling sisters Jamie and Lauren found on my last post… Bowman’s Beach is rockin!
Soooo, now that I’ve caught you up with the shelling news… let me catch you up on my news.
Drum roll please…. ddllllrrrrrrrrr…..
I am now a partner of The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel as a SWFL (SouthWest Florida) Insider. I’m the designated shelling insider for Lee County! Here’s my new badge so click on it and it will take you to the program information just launched on Facebook…
Okay, and I more excitement this week! Clark and I were interviewed by this REALLY nice gal that happens to be a reporter for …
okay, another drum roll…. dlllrrrr….
The New York Times!!! Crazy, huh? She wanted to know about shelling on Sanibel and happened to find iLoveShelling! So, pleeeaase keep your fingers crossed that the story is featured and makes it in the paper. I was going to keep it a secret to see if it really showed up in print, but I figured if I could spread good vibes, it can’t hurt this little ol’ shelling blog. I’ll keep you posted. Shelling fingers crossed!
Oh, and one more thing… I promise, this is it for today but I couldn’t help but sing a little. LaLaLaaaa… Okay the vocal cords are warmed up.
Happy Birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birrrrthdaaaay dear Super Sheller Claarrrk. Happy Birthday to you!
Welcome To Captiva
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I saw several work trucks in the Blind Pass parking lot so, of course my first thought was that this was the first sign for the dredging of the pass to begin. Then I saw… literally… a “sign”. A new “Welcome” sign! The crew at R.S Walsh landscaping couldn’t have been nicer and sure did a fine job posing as our welcoming committee. Thanks guys! (hmmm, should it have said “WHELKome”?)
Still no dredging equipment but there is a fresh new pile of shells and big chunks of CORAL. Heather and Karak found a great piece…
I love this piece. It’s a CORAL Kiss!
So talking about CORAL, look at this big honking hunk…
Oh yaya, You see those ALPHIES, FLATS, deep red TULIP, yellow HORSIE, and the SHARK’S EYE. But I know you had to spot that sweet little LION’S PAW…
These were all found by Wendy and her husband Kevin (no, he didn’t get in the pic) from Blind Pass to Bowman’s this week.
After showing me the other shells, she pulled out this mac daddy HORSE CONCH… niiiiice!
I saw Shelling Sistah Janet from Georgia finding some goodies too. I saw her last year about this same time with her good friend Betty Jo (Hi Betty Jo!).
Leah (from Clearwater area) posted this next photo on the i Love Shelling Facebook page and said
“Yesterday I found my second whole (well almost completely whole) Junonia up at the beach renourishment site at Sand Key. Here it is with my other fave finds of the weekend.”
Oh My!! Along with two, count them, two JUNONIAS, she found a SCOTCH BONNET and half a LIONS PAW. That for me is The Elite Three. And that’s not it! COLORFUL MOONS, ALPHABET CONES (yes, I call them ALPHIES), and look at the brown color of that OLIVE. What kind of OLIVE is that?
These shells were found at Sand Key which is up in Clearwater, Florida about 2 1/2 hours drive north from Sanibel. Leah says they are doing dredging there right now. Wow! This is the conversation on the Facebook page (click on it to enlarge)…
So if this is any “sign” of what’s to come from our dredging project on Captiva and Sanibel, this will be exciting! Yes, I’d like to find another JUNONIA but I would especially like to find an ATLANTIC MORUM like Leah did. Here’s a closer shot of the MORUM sandwiched in between the JUNONIA and GOLDEN OLIVE (that’s quite an impressive sandwich) .
Yesterday’s Surf Advisory
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After hearing there was a surf advisory with high SW winds yesterday, I couldn’t wait to see the beach filled with seashells and cool Beach Bling.
Shawn from Kansas was in perfect Sanibel Stoop position so I figured he had already found some goodies…
He found a nice mix of shells. I looove that LACE MUREX with the link top…
After talking to him, we realized that I had met his mom a few weeks ago, She’s Shelling Sistah Karen from that special day “When Shelling Worlds Collide“. Hi Karen! Now I met your son Shawn!
Massachusetts girls Kristin, Chloe and Haley were having a blast finding PAPER FIGS, SEA URCHINS and STARFISH. Most of the STARFISH were alive so they went back to the water but there were a few dried in the high wrack line. A souvenir!
I didn’t see many shells on the pier side of the Sanibel lighthouse but there was plenty of SARGASSUM. This is a type of seaweed provides a rich environment for marine animals like SEA TURTLES.
More PAPER FIG EGG CASINGS…
Low and behold, I found a BABY’S EAR turned upside down in the bling…
And just to get my heart racing, half way buried in the sand I saw the ribs of a LION’S PAW. I reached down to dig it out … and came up with a broken piece. That’s ok! Where there’s a broken piece today, there may be a whole piece tomorrow.
We’ve had so many beautiful calm days for weeks and weeks. This is a wonderful thing for most people, right? But for us shellers, give us some messy weather! This wind was a start but maybe just 2 days back to back of high west winds… then it can go back to perfectly gorgeous island weather. Am I being too selfish?
PS- The DOLPHINS and PELICANS were playing this morning too!
