Can you more experienced conchologists/malacologists out there
help me with a few questions concerning the age of shells.
1) I was wondering how long it takes most cones and cowries to
reach their adult size? That is when the shell is considered
adult and no longer juvenile.
2) Can you determine the age of a shell? I know with some
bivalves, you can count the number of growth lines to determine
its age. How do you tell the age of gastropods such as cones or
cowries?
3) Are giant sized shells very old shells or are they ones which
just grew bigger?
Thanks in advance for any and all responses.
Ted Hu
Montebello, California USA