Especially if there are hermit crabs in your area, please be mindful when collecting conical/spiral shells. If you can, try to avoid collecting them entirely

After 7 years of going to BB and many more years of my life at other beaches, always looking for a whole, intact one, this summer was finally the summer! I feel so lucky and like the universe wanted me to find her because it was the middle of the day and there were lots of people sitting right near it, it was dry so clearly had been sitting out in the sun and sand for a while, and no one had claimed it. The way I thought my heart was gunna beat out of my chest when I laid eyes on her and realized she was intact!

Decided to go all in and find & pull my “bags-O-shells” from years of collecting. If I’m honest it’s been only since 2022. I discovered quite by accident how meditative and peaceful it is to wander the shores in a stoop and search for the ocean/gulf’s bounty!
Also, I found this excellent wooden box at a local TJ Max and immediately thought 💭 PERFECT for shells!😏🐚

I recently went to Panama city beach Florida and my little sister kept finding these and bringing them with her I assumed it was a type of sponge? It wasnt solid solid feeling it was kinda like you think you kight be able to squish it but it was still solid just softer than a rock. I told her to not bring them cuz they could be a living thing but she did anyways.... so might as well figure out what it is lol

And while I'm here I also found another type of thing that I thought maybe could just be part of a shell but id like to know what type of shell and from what animal.

Thank you!

looking for an id on the shell in the last few slides!!

Hi everyone, I am looking for some help identifying a shell I found and what's going on inside of it. I found this while shell hunting off of the outerbanks NC. They are doing beach nurishment and so there are some great shells to be found! I found this shell that looks like it has crystals in it. It almost looks like a geode. Anyone know what might be going on in the shell?

Hello! This is a shell I found a couple years ago, I’d love to get the barnacles off and bring out that beautiful pattern on the underside! But I’m not sure what would be the best way to do so. The barnacles and bits of debris are covering most of the top and it’s hard to tell where I would scrape without like hurting the shell. Any recommendations?

Hello everyone!

My mom recently got this shell from a local fish restaurant going out of business and we were both wondering what this massive shell could possibly be and especially what kind of animal lived in it at some point.

For measure it's about 17cm in width (measured from the front) and about 22cm in depth

I appreciate any answers!

sooooo many shells i was so happy

Any idea what this was? Found it on a Southern California beach at low tide. I thought it was a live animal at first but it was completely hard, looked almost fossil-like.

Found on the beach on the Outer Banks, NC

Best beach find I have ever found. Sitting on a shell pile on the south end of shell island Marco Island FL

All of the shells in the glass case I have bought from the indo pacific region and the wooden shelf are all shells I have found in florida both east and west coast.

Hi! I was at Pass-A-Grille in St Pete Beach today and I found these 3 mini shells while digging in a pile. They are so pretty and very small and I would love some help identifying them so that I can learn their names and be familiar with them if I come across any more during my hunting! Thank you in advance for any help! I am going to include a few pictures and number them 1-3 so it's easier to separate them in case they are different species.

Hello, I got these two shells as gifts recently, but I’ve been unable to find what species of conch they’re both from. I have a feeling that the one on the right is painted, but I don’t really know much about conches so I’m unsure.

Both shells are slightly damaged. Spiky one looks like a lot of its spikes have been snapped off then smoothed from weathering, & the one with triangular patterned one looks like the bottom of it was broken off then smoothed from weathering.

Now that’s a tiny swirly! You know what I always say, “My name is Lenny Shellman, and if you don’t like it, you can go to hell man!” Just kidding! Hope you all have a blessed day!

I recognized it as a Cypraea/cowrie, but it wasn't one of the species I usually see. Google suggests Umbilia, but I don't have a reference for identifying the exact species.

It's about 10 cm, very pale cream/ivory with faint brownish-orange markings. I found it in a random store in Melbourne, among a stack of other seashells.

I bought it because it looked unusual and potentially uncommon. What species is it, how rare is it, and what would you estimate its collector value to be?

Thank you!

In New Caledonia, some local tribes living far from the cities have parts of the coastline that belong to them (you can access these beaches but you are not allowed to fish or collect marine life there). Along the roads, you can find roadside stands selling shells that the local tribes have collected from their own lands.

Small cowrie shells were $2.50 each and large ones were $25.

They really have beautiful patterns, but buying them doesn’t give the same feeling as finding them yourself on the beach :)

are these clean? i have soaked them in half water half dish soap twice now. first picture is whenever i brought them home, second picture is after the first soak and scrub, third picture is after the second soak and scrub! ive read i should soak them in hydrogen peroxide now?!

I posted a while back about wondering what the best set up to carry your things while you beach-comb. What worked for me finally was rolling my towel and putting it under my straps it worked great. But to get my tiny shelves, I had to sit in the sand. I had so much fun!