Hello cone fanciers,

I'm responding from the Village Hotel on Pohnpei.

Quite a wealth of shells here and nearly unspoiled reefs. Well, I'll qualify that. One of the ways that it's become unnecessary to go after live shells is the use of reef for some paving. The shells are literally sticking out of the roads and out of piles of reef tailings ready to be used for pavement. Found a nice Conus nusatella in such a spot.

We went diving and snorkeling on the outer islet of Ahnd (quite idyllic). There on the beach being surrounded by hermit crabs was a perfect fresh dead C. striatus with pink apex. Speaking of hermits: I laughed out loud to see one LARGE hermit stuffed into a two-inch blue cylindrical plastic cap.

Lots of Vexillum species of every description and much more. The Tiger Cowries don't look like most of the illustrations I've seen: sparser spots. (Maybe this is a different form?) Plenty of Cypraea lynx. And C. moneta (nyah, nyah--no free supply for someone who wants to sell them).

Haven't yet come across live cones while diving, snorkeling, or reefcombing.

While I can't claim to have seen much of the central Pacific, this has got to be the lush version of Paradise.

More soon,

David Kirsh
usually of Durham, NC

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