Today will be a short but educational post because I don't have much time.
As you can guess by the title, it's gonna be about MUREXES!!!!!
Featured will be the Apple Murex, the Lace Murex, and the Cabrit's Murex.
Let's get started then!
First is the Florida Lace Murex. All the Lace Murices that I have found were on Sanibel Island. The most common coloring for these shells is white with a pinkish nose. Darker, tan or light brown murices are more rare. This is considered to be the most common Florida Murex, but I have found more Apple Murices than Lacies.
Also, these guys are so closely related to the West Indian Lace Murex, that although they are listed as two separate species, the Florida Lace Murex might actually be a subspecies of the West Indian Lace Murex.
Next is the Apple Murex- all these have also been found on Sanibel Island.
These guys prey exclusively on the common Eastern Oyster. They bore holes in the oyster shells to get at the mollusk's meat.
The Cabrit's Murex is pretty rare to be found on Sanibel Island. I think that it's more common the Florida's East Coast. This guy was found in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
The Cabrit's Murex was named in honor of a French shell collector from the mid-1800's.
And here is a comparison of all three murices (from left to right): the Cabrit's Murex, the Lace Murex and the Apple Murex.
All murices are really pretty and a favorite of mine as a sheller, I hope you guys like them too!
Bye now,
Yaroshelllava :D
