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Subject:
From:
Paul Monfils <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Conchologists of America List <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Tue, 19 Jan 1999 14:25:30 -0500
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
text/plain (36 lines)
Hi John,
The queen conch is Strombus gigas, which actually means "giant
conch".
Pearls can be produced by a wide variety of bivalves, possibly all
bivalves, I'm not sure.  They also form sometimes in gastropods.
However, not all pearls are created equal.  A pearl forms when the
mollusk responds to an irritating speck of sand or grit that
accidentaly gets inside its shell, and which it cannot expel by the
usual water currents that pass through the shell.  The animal's
mantle, the organ which secretes the shell itself, secretes a layer
of shell material over the offending object, smoothing it so that it
doesn't irritate the soft tissues of the mollusk.  It then continues
to secrete additional layers, so the pearl gradually grows in size.
So, the exterior surface of the pearl resembles the interior surface
of the shell.  If the bivalve is a venus clam with a chalky white
interior, then a pearl produced in that animal will have a chalky
white exterior, and no value as a gem.  Giant clams sometimes produce
pearls the size of golf balls, but of no value other than scientific.
If a shell has a shiny pink interior (like the queen conch) its pearls
will be shiny and pink.    What sets the pearl oysters apart is that
their shells are lined with the beautiful, iridescent "mother of
pearl" that is so often used in jewelry.  Hence, the pearls of those
species are equally beautiful and "pearly".  Fresh water mussels also
have pearly interiors, and produce "semi-precious" pearls, often used
in jewelry, but not worth as much as pearl oyster pearls.  Even small
worms and shrimp that crawl into a pearl oyster sometimes end up as
odd-shaped pearls.
Queen conchs are farmed in a number of places in the Caribbean, but
queen conch pearls are not as far as I know, because they don't have
value as gemstones.
By a cutaway "view" of a queen conch, do you mean a picture or an
actual shell?  In either case, if you contact me privately I may be
able to help you out.
Regards,
Paul M.

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