Good point Martin....the problem with the limit is enforcing it.    I can just
imagine having a bucket full of shells (two of each species) and having the
enforcing officer trying to figure out what is what!!!
Definitely shells are not being wiped out by the private scientific
collector......and a lot of it is being done by the State itself with all the
bulldozing, pollution, overbuilding, "renourishment", etc.
 
"Martin E. Tremor, Jr." wrote:
 
> Excellent point made by Mark here!! I too would welcome a number limit on all
> species throughout the state. Here on Tampa Bay, some of the easily accessible
> and formerly  excellent collecting spots have been raided regularly by ethnic
> groups in our area that use any and all molluscs for food. They hit the flats
> in mass with bucket in hand and grab everything in sight. A group of 6 or 8
> will have the area stripped of any exposed molluscs in no time. I often see
> this being done on the Manatee side of the Sunshine Skyway where there is a
> two per species limit. Marine patrol tells me there is no way they can control
> that. Hmmm. What is wrong with this picture? Maybe if it were a 'state wide'
> limit it could be better enforced.
>
> I have, on rare occasion, been able to buy these buckets full of live shells
> for $10.00 and then carry them into deeper water and turn them loose. This
> rarely ever happens however.
>
> Something that I do when I am shelling...I never pass up a dead shell. I take
> them home and clean them up nice and put them in the trunk of my car. Then,
> when I am shelling an easily accessible area that might have tourists picking
> up live shells, I explain to them the difficulty of cleaning live shells and
> offer to trade one of my nicely cleaned beauties for their live one. Most
> times the trade is made, the tourist beaming ear to ear with their new cleaned
> shell, while I  carry the live one to deeper water and release it. Now there
> is a "win win situation".
 
--
Jim and Bobbi Cordy
of Merritt Island, Florida.
Specalizing in Self-Collected
Caribbean & Florida Shells