Shell Game

Whilst scouring the reef for interesting things, I happened upon a small treasure. Lying in the sand and rubble at the base of a coral head was this perfect spiked helmet shell ( Casmaria erinaceus kalosmodix).

Photo Copyright 2013 by Barry Fackler

The shell was clean and perfectly intact - a rarity on the Big Island where a lot of the predators just crush shells and eat the contents. When one does find an intact shell, it is often inhabited by it's mollusk builder or a hermit crab. The inhabitant of this shell was probably eaten just hours before by a cone or Triton's trumpet snail.

Just to be clear with you, the shell is now in my collection. If I come across something this beautiful during a dive and I can have it without taking a life, then I consider it a gift from The Sea and I am grateful.

Beautiful Shell

I found this beautiful Triton's Trumpet shell (Charonia tritonis) while diving this Saturday at Honaunau. It was close to a foot long and still occupied by its builder. The Triton's Trumpet is a snail just like the ones you would find in your garden except it is specially adapted for its marine habitat.

Photo Copyright 2013 by Barry Fackler

The top of the shell has a coating of marine growth and sand as such things tend to settle on slow moving surfaces.

Photo Copyright 2013 by Barry Fackler

The underside is generally clean and glossy, particularly the aperature which is the "hole" the creature protrudes out of. The yellow and tan matter is the creature's muscular foot. The brownish oval is the operculum, a toenail-like structure that seals the aperature securely shut when the snail retracts into its shell. the operculum is the final wall that, along with the shell, completely protects the snail's soft body from would-be predators.

Life is full of beautiful things. Take time to enjoy them!