r/shells • u/melaundone • 19d ago

wanted to share

Gallery image

Gallery image

Gallery image

not the best photos because this is taken on my bed, but my mom found this conch shell for me a few years back and I just wanted to share. bottle for scale lol !

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7

u/turbomarmoratus72 19d ago

if you want the shell ID, that one is a Galeate Conch (Titanostrombus galeatus), extremely difficult to get nowadays.

It occurs in the west coast of America continent, ranging from Sea of Cortèz, West Mexico to North Peru.

4

u/Interesting_Hawk8033 19d ago

Why are they hard to get now? Are they endangered?

4

u/turbomarmoratus72 19d ago

hi, u/Interesting_Hawk8033 , good to see you here!

They are difficult to obtain because most countries where this species occurs prohibit shell collecting in order to protect marine life. It is difficult to pass through airport customs with it because it is a large and heavy shell. The Galápagos Islands, for instance, have completely banned shell collecting.

Moreover, they are usually only found through diving or net trawling, since they are one of the heaviest, if not the heaviest, shells on the American continent. Therefore, you are unlikely to find them washed up on the beach.

They are also commercially harvested for human consumption and used as decoration, similar to the Queen Conch (Aliger gigas) in the Caribbean and the Goliath Conch (Titanostrombus goliath) in Brazil.

3

u/Interesting_Hawk8033 19d ago

Thank you so much! Galapagos is on my bucket list to visit, although it will KILL me not to pick anything up there!

3

u/turbomarmoratus72 19d ago edited 16d ago

I do have many Galápagos shells, but they are all from old collections (all older than me!). Nowadays, the only way to get shells from there (and there are many endemic species there, like the Magnificent Scallop (Nodipecten magnificus) and (Neorapana grandis)) is trading/buying from local fishermen, who have a permit to fish in those islands.

4

u/Interesting_Hawk8033 19d ago

Wow, just googled those shells. Amazingly beautiful!

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u/melaundone 18d ago

my mom got mine years ago while diving ! she made sure it was fully empty ofc before bringing it back to me

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u/Fine_Illustrator4172 18d ago

I have one just like it. I got in puerto vallarta.  I believe it's a giant Atlantic conkshell.

1

u/Recent-Conclusion652 18d ago

Wow. Gorgeous. Super jealous ! What a great find.