In Roatan Island, Honduras, I had a friend who owned a fleet of Conch
boats. These boats covered a very large area of the western Caribbean, from
Misteriosa Banks and Pedro Banks (Jamaica), south to San Andres Island,
Colombia. He had a collection of some two hundred Strombus gigas pearls.
Although many were colored pale pinkish to red, some were yellow and
brown.Most were "barroque" pearls and, as I remeber,the largest was about
half an inch. Fishermen of the island always had them for sale, together
with black coral and,of course, shells.
 
Emilio F. Garcia
115 Oak Crest Dr.
Lafayette, LA 70503
USA