Bingo - I was thinking of the Glory of the Seas. In the 60's it was a
want to have/wishing...
Now it can be bought. Thanks John.
This one drove me wild Stellaria solaris paucispinosa (Kosuge & Nomoto)
I found one(1) in the 'South Pacific' - Kwajalein.
The one I had didn't look like many on the web. I found a matching one
here :
http://www.dafni.com/mollusca/Spec_2.htm#xeno Item 341 on the right a
row up from the bottom.
In the Dozen years Mom and Dad collected shells - mostly in the early
years with me - only one was found.
I found the photograph to compare at long last. The Asian & US sites
didn't help. (the ones I found)
The name helps - but picture ID is complex some times.
In this case, rare on Kwajalein and rare in the Red Sea / Eastern Med.
The issue is the color change within. It is dark. Think Oil. I suspect
an Oil tanker..... brought (tanks)
a load to Kwajalein (Mid pacific refueling site (Germany, Japan, USA))
for various cargo ships and SEATO nations
and other war/defense ships of all types. When Big ships (carriers)
can't or won't come in - fuelers can and take a load
to them.
So transport to/from Kwajalein has occurred from WWI or before through
today. And by various Pacific groups for
unknown hundreds.
Martin
John Varner wrote:
> "Rare species" and "rare in collections" is the important
> distinction. If no one is offering local fishermen money for shells
> that are exceptional specimens or relatively common as by-catch, they
> stay "rare" (and pricey) in the market place. Conversely, the last
> few decades of deep water trawling has brought many benthic species to
> market at reasonable prices. However, as this energy-intensive and
> environmentally destructive method of fishing is curtailed, the
> species thus obtained will slip back into rarity. (Similarly, habitat
> destruction is causing some formerly common species into rarity,
> especially among land snail populations.) Sport divers have also
> brought many species to light that had previously just been seen from
> the stomachs of bottom- or reef-feeding fishes. A final example would
> be the molluscan fauna from deep hydrothermal vents. Photos of such
> features sometimes show vast numbers of specimens, all safely beyond
> the reach of most collectors.
>
> I am personally struck by the price differences seen in some classic
> (former) rarities from dealer to dealer. Conus gloriamaris is a
> perfect example - it can vary by a factor of 10 in cost. New
> collectors reading books written before 1975 may think they are
> getting a deal when purchasing a specimen for $300. Ouch. Buyer beware.
>
>
>
>
>
> --- On *Mon, 10/13/08, Jordan Star /<[log in to unmask]>/* wrote:
>
> From: Jordan Star <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: [CONCH-L] rare, uncommon, common, shells?
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Date: Monday, October 13, 2008, 1:24 PM
>
> Hello
> In any shell book, the words rare, common, abundant, etc.,
> should they be ignored? A rare shell might be rare until a
> large colony is found or several colonies are found then it
> is common, right?
>
> Jordan Star
>
>
>
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--
Martin H. Eastburn
@ home at Lions' Lair with our computer lionslair at consolidated dot net
TSRA, Endowed; NRA LOH & Patron Member, Golden Eagle, Patriot's Medal.
NRA Second Amendment Task Force Charter Founder
IHMSA and NRA Metallic Silhouette maker & member.
http://lufkinced.com/
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