jane with juvenile milk conch sanibel beach

As Jane and I walked all along West Gulf Drive after those cold (down to 37 degrees!) winds came through this past week, I heard her say “Whoa!” then bend down to pick up a shell. She found a JUVENILE MILK CONCH!

jane holding juvenile Strombus costatus

A MILK CONCH is very unusual to find here on Sanibel since it’s a caribbean shell.

jane juvenile milk conch

Look how colorful it still is!

jane juvenile milk conch aperture

If you remember, Beach Girl Robyn found an adult MILK CONCH along the same beach in September and I said the same…. “Unusual”. Maybe I should say it’s a “rare” find here instead. To find it here, it’s way more rare than finding a JUNONIA! In any case, this 5 inch shell a fantastic find.

5 inch juvenile milk conch sanibel florida

So then we keep walking and she’s about 5 paces ahead of me. I see her run and pick up something else in a hurry. She yells “Aha! A SCOTCH BONNET!”. What???

Strombus costatus and Semicassis granulata

Yes, my buddy Jane also found a perfect SCOTCH BONNET right in front of me. I felt like I was walking with Clark for goodness sakes! Heehee. No, really….we were both ecstatic.

Jane scotch bonnet

Note to self: Never let Jane walk in front of me while we are shelling together. Ha!

jane scotch bonnet aperture

 We also met SS Jenny (Shelling Sister) sifting through a sweet honey hole where she was finding oodles of FIGHTING CONCHS, WHELKS and OLIVES. She got out there before sunrise and used her iLS lighted cap she got for Christmas! Right after I took this picture she found two ALPHABET CONES in the same spot. Weehoo! She had no trouble finding the Sanibel Six many times over.

Jenny Iowa shelling sanibel

Congrats to Jane and Jenny on your seaside treasure trove!

 Sanibel shell beach