BIG correction:  I gave the measurements on both shells in millimeters, when
I should have said centimeters or at least put in some decimal points in the
mm's.

Thanks to everyone for the help on Polygyra.  Since these were found in a
large group (all dead) on the shore of St. Joe Bay inside a remote area of
the State Park on the peninsula and I was unable to tell whether they came
from land or sea, I think I will go with Polygyra cereolus, Muhlfeld 1816.
It was hard to tell whether they came from the water or the land, since they
were near the tide line.  It is tubular, 5 whorls, and has a flared lip like
a land snail.  This is assuming that the largest is 15cm or 1.5mm.  Do you
all agree?

BIG correction:  I gave the measurements on both shell in millimeters, when
I should have said centimeters or at least put in some decimal points in the
mm's.

Can anyone now help me with this tiny Drilla(?) that is only 9cm or less (or
.9mm)?  They are common I think, but I can't find a name.  They were
collected snorkeling in the Keys clinging to rocks on the sand bottom.

Anyone willing to help, let me know I will send you a scan of the shells for
confirmation.

Sylvia

Sylvia S. Edwards
Huntsville, Alabama
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----- Original Message -----
From: Kurt Auffenberg <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, September 23, 1999 1:43 PM
Subject: Re: [CONCH-L] Need help


> At 02:25 PM 9/23/99 -0400, you wrote:
> >>Anyway, here's the rub.  Museum collections indicate that cereolus
started
> >>popping up all over in Florida after 1950.  Interior metropolitan areas,
> >>roadsides, even inland counties in other southeastern states.  This
great
> >>range expansion corresponds with the big land development booms of
Florida.
> >> They are transported in plant pots and sod for people's yards and along
> >>roadsides.
> >
> >Kurt, you are absolutely correct. I did some collecting in Florida around
> >Tampa area last August. There were hundreds of live Polygyra in my
in-laws'
> >backyard. First I thought I had run into "native" populations. Then I
found
> >them in flower pots that had been bought in K-Mart & along road sides
where
> >grass had been planted, but they were absent from areas where there was
no
> >grass.  I found them on the campus of U. of Florida, but only where
> >landscaping had been done. Weathered shells were on all beaches. After a
> >while, you begin to wonder if there is any value in collecting these.
> Because,
> >there is no way of knowing when a particular shell was brought to that
> >location. It may have been years ago when the area was first developed or
it
> >may have been last spring. So, in my mind collections from such areas
have
> >little value if one is looking for local variations, etc. (But we weren't
> >really discussing that, were we?)
> >
> >A.
> >
> Collecting them has bearing if you are documenting the present
> distributions of things.  Comparison to museum collections may be an
> interesting exercise if the area was properly surveyed in the past.  Also,
> these populations may be transient, so may disappear.  Documentation may
be
> interesting to someone.  I agree with you, but I collect everything that
> moves or sits still anyway....
>
> Out of the office the rest of the day.  Schnoogies,  Kurt
>