Identification guide

This guide is devoted to help in identifying the many seashells and other sealife that can be  found along the shore.  From seashells to sanddollars to starfish and more.  With so much of the Earth covered by water it would be impossible to include all items that could be found  but most people should be able to find what they are looking for.

Mollusks
Seashells belong the kingdom Mollusca. Most Mollusca are soft fleshy slug like creatures that have an hard external skeleton type structure to help protect them. Mollusca can be found in both salt and fresh water, as well as on the land (snails). In the oceans, this structure is known as a seashell.

Sand dollars
Sand dollars are of the Phylum Echinodermata, class Echinoidea. They, like the sea urchin, have no arms or legs but move around by tiny spines on their body. Sand dollars are usually found lying in a bed buried under a layer of sand. If a sand dollar is found alive it will appear to have a layer of very fine hair on its body. These are the spines. They are a slow moving grazer that feeds on disintegrating organic material found within their sand beds.

Starfish
Starfish are not actually a fish at all , but are animals belonging to the Phylum Echinodermata, and are further divided into two classes Asteroidea(sea stars) and Ophiuroidea(brittle stars). Although starfish are thought to be passive they can be quite a voracious predator under the sea. Starfish feed primarily on mollusks and other echinoderms. While starfish are commonly represented as having only 5 legs , there are some that exhibit many more as seen here.

Sea Urchins
Sea Urchins are a member of the Phylum Echinodermata, Class Echinoidea. Rather then having arms or legs the sea urchin actually has long spines as a substitute. These spines are used primarily for camouflage, locomotion, and defensive purposes. The sea urchin feeds on sea grasses, algae, and decaying organic matter. One can see their close relationship to the sand dollar and starfish by looking closely at their underside, near the middle, where the familiar 5 pointed star pattern can be found.

Sponges
These can sometimes be found washed up along the shore after a good wind or storm passes through

Crabs
It is not uncommon to find a crab or its shell along the beach. This page will help you to identify what type of crab it is you have found or seen
 

Part of the thrill of finding new shells and beach treasures is identifying them and learning more about how they came to be. There are several good web sites and books to rely on for this information. Check out these and then look at the resources below to do a little of your own investigative work.

banded tulip Fasciolaria hunteria Up to 3 inches long, not very common along beaches as the creature that lives inside prefers grassy bay flats.

buttercup Anodontia alba Pale yellow and white, thick but slightly translucent, common on beaches and in shallow water, up to 2 inches long.

calico clam Macrocallista maculata Very smooth, shiny shell found on beaches and in shallow water, in shades of brown, rose, taupe and tan with darker rust/red spotting and white insides, up to 4 inches long.

broad-ribbed cardita Carditamera floridana Commonly found along beaches about 1 inch long, can be a variety of colors.

Florida auger Terebra sp., fly-specked cerith and Florida cerith Cerithium sp. Common on beaches, various shades of tan, rust, brown, gray and white, up to 2 inches.

channeled duck clam Raeta plicatella Very common on beaches, up to 4 inches long and 1/2 inch wide at mouth.

channel whelk Busycon canaliculatum Not very common along beaches, smaller ones more common than large ones, can be up to 6 inches long and several inches across flat end.

coquina Donax variabilis Very common along waters edge being eaten by seagulls, often found in pairs still connected like butterfly wings. (Note: Very often found both sides together and closed; in this case, the shell is still alive and should be left alone.)

A variety of common coral and barnacles that sometimes attach to shells along beaches.

money cowrie Cypraea moneta and ring top cowrie Cypraea annulus Common on Indo-Pacific beaches in shallow water around coral reefs, most less than 1 inch long.

elegant dosinia Dosinia elegans In various shades of white, gray and pale yellow, common along beaches, up to 3 inches long.

fighting conch Strombus alatusVery common on Gulf beaches in Florida, often with rich red and rust-colored exteriors and shiny interiors, up to 4 inches long.

jingles/jingle shells Anomia simplex Very common along the shore and in shallow water, very shiny and pearly, can be very brittle, mulitple layers, various shades of yellow, tan, peach, light green, white, clear, up to about 1-1/2 inch across.

gaudy natica Natica canrena Common on beaches and in shallow water, up to 1-1/2 inches long, white with yellow and tan markings.

keyhole limpet Not very common, usually about an inch across and slightly longer in length, in various shades of green, black and gray with lighter undersides.

kitten's paw Plicatula gibbosa Very common on beaches, usually white or gray with red/rust-colored shading and striping along knobby ridges, up to 1-1/2 inch across.

lettered olive Oliva sayana Commonly found along Gulf beaches in Florida, very smooth and shiny tightly curled shell, up to 3 inches long.

lightning whelk Busycon contrarium One of only a few left-handed (left-facing) shells, not very common but can be very large, up to 15 inches long and as large on the flat end as an open hand.

turkey wing (zebra arc) Arca zebra Common on beaches, up to 4 inches long, rarely found in pairs still attached, various shades of brown, black, gray and dark green with light-colored undersides, very rough surface.

apple murex Phyllonotus pomum Not very commonly found but more common than other murex shells, very spiny and intricate, up to 3 inches long.

razor or jack knife clam Ensis directus Very common on sand beaches, can be up to 6 inches long.

Florida sand dollar

calico scallop Argopecten gibbus and Carolina Bay scallop Argopecten irradians Very common on beaches, in a variety of colors, up to 3 inches wide.

Sea glass is simply pieces of glass from broken bottles in the sea that have been tumbled smooth and milky by the waves and sand. It can be found in a variety of colors but most often shades of light green, as that is the most common color of bottle glass in use today.

shark eye, moon snail Polinices duplicatus Very common on some beaches, up to 2 inches long, in a variety of colors from white, tan and gray to darker red and blue hues.

slipper shell Crepidula fornicata Various shades of white, orange and rusty tans, common on the beach, up to 2 inches long.

spiny jewel box Arcinella arcinellaVery knobby white shell with pink and rosy peach undersides, common on beaches, up to 2 inches wide.

fringed or starburst star shell Astraea sp. Spiraled shell with flat bottom, very textured and knobby but pearly under a thin crust, up to 1-1/2 inch wide.

sunray venus Macrocallista nimbosa Shiny, smooth shell in shades of taupe and brown with darker striping and white insides, up to 5 inches long.

Van Hyning's cockle Dinocardium vanhyningi Smooth ribbed cup-like shell in various shades of orange/rust, white or creamy yellow, very common along the beach, hardly ever found in pairs, up to 5 inches across and very deep.

wentletrap Epitonium angulatum Very white nearly translucent shell with very defined chambers and an exterior "spine" common on beach at high tide, up to 1 inch long.

worm shell Vermicularia fargoi Various light tan/rust shades as well as white, coiled in various densities, from about 1/2 inch up to several inches long, hollow