My head was in the clouds (isn't that what my high school teachers used to say) as I was taking photos of the landscape and clouds on Cayo Costa. I stopped taking photos and waited for the clouds to build a little higher to fit in the full frame of the camera. This is when I looked down and noticed a Limpet. I thought "Oh, look at this key hole limpet!" Then I realized it wasn't a key hole limpet. It reminded me of the limpets in Panama. However it was not the same. Humm, Then the cloud I had been waiting for to build up was perfect for the photo. I quickly put the limpet in my shirt pocket and continued taking photos. Like so many of my prized little treasures I find on the beach, it went through the wash cycle in the washing machine. I didn't remember it was in my shirt pocket until it was half way through the dry cycle. I ran quickly to the dryer and pulled out my shirt and just knew it was broke. Somehow it made it out in one piece. Ahh! I have never found this type of limpet before. It was a first. I have been trying to figure out exactly what kind it is. If you have found one like this, I would love to know where and of course what kind. Who knows what you can discover when your head is in the clouds.
3 comments:
Hi Brian,
It looks like Say's False Limpet - I've seen a few down here on the SE coast.
Hello Captain Brian,
What you found is the shell of a striped false limpet, Siphonaria pectinata. They grow as large as 1 inch in length. They don't have gills; they breathe air instead. You can find images of the shell and the live animal and more info at:
http://www.shellmuseum.org/shells/shelldetails.cfm?id=156
I live in NYC but will be coming to Sanibel for the first time this December. I hope maybe I will see you there!
Susan H.
Thank you for all the help in identifying this shell. Capt.Brian
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