Well lets not cut up a beautiful specimen lets examine the fact (they have
been found to be filled with sea water ) and with facts we can come to some
reasoning , it would make good common sense that a heavy shell would find
ways to lighten up it self and filling areas of non use with liquid would do
just that .
Dinosaurs that wondered the earth during the Jurassic, epoch had  massive
skeletal structures that had large areas or pockets of air or fluid, without
these lightening strutures the bones would be so heavy that the animal
wouldn't be able to walk much less crawl and that wouldn't be too helpful in
a land infested with Albertasaurus or them nasty raptors .
Modern birds have hollow wind bones with areas in the thorax that are air
filled to lighten thier weight allowing them to fly .
Enjoy thy day ferret
----- Original Message -----
From: Paul Kanner <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, May 16, 2001 9:24 PM
Subject: Re: Verification...


> Might be interesting to cut a cross section of a knob or node to see if it
> is hollow or is solid shell material. That would give a clue to the
answer.
> I personally don't have a specimen that I feel like sacraficing. If I did,
> it would already be on the grinder.
>
>  Regards, Paul Kanner
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Linda Bush" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Wednesday, May 16, 2001 3:26 PM
> Subject: Verification...
>
>
> > Hi, Conch-Lers!
> >
> > I read in a shell book yesterday that the knobs of a Lion's Paw
> > (actually Nodipecten fragosus) are filled with liquid when the
> > animal is alive.   Can anyone verify this for me?   This is the first
time
> I have run accross this statement.
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Linda
>