Dr. Abbott's Golden Field Guide, "Seashells of North America," copyright
1968, page 92, does not mention Recluzia rollandiana as being rare.  The
habitat is listed as Florida-Texas-Brazil. I found two that we picked up on
the beach in the panhandle of Florida.  I had accidentally grouped them with
our freshwater snails, Florida Applesnail and Banded Viviparus.

The top spire is broken off both of ours.  The larger is 38mm and the
smaller, which looks immature is 30mm.  The top spire would have added a few
mm's.  They are very thin, but not quite as brittle or as easily broken as
our Janthinas.  The fact that they were empty and intact speaks for the
strength, I guess.

Speaking of Janthina janthina, what other seashells are ovoviviparous, or
are born free-swimming (not to mention being hermaphrodites)?

Sylvia S. Edwards
Huntsville, Alabama
[log in to unmask]

----- Original Message -----
From: Harry G. Lee <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 19, 1999 6:41 PM
Subject: Re: [CONCH-L] Recluzia lutea


> The following is a passage from a manuscript I am working on (Northeast
> Florida shells):
>
> "469. Recluzia rollandiana  Petit de la Saussaye, 1853  Brown Janthina
[5]
>  11 mm.
> Drift, St. Augustine Beach. PJ! 1981. (PJ).
> A Sargassum-associated species like Litiopa melanostoma (no. 274)."
>
> PJ! means collected by Paul Jones (now residing in Sicily with the US
> Navy). [5] means rare (actually only a single specimen (seen by me).  In
> Florida this appears to be a rare species (at least in collections).
>
> Harry
>
>
> At 07:25 PM 10/19/99 -0400, you wrote:
> >>I was looking at some of my shell books yesterday and I found that
> >>Recluzia lutea feeds upon the Minyas Sea Amemone.  For some reason if
> >>the populations of the Minya Sea Amemone decline then obviously the
> >>Recluzia poulation will decline along with it.  So far no one has
> >>directly reponded to my inquiry about this shell.  I guess no one on
> >>Conch-L has ever heard about anyone collecting one of these shells.
> >>
> >>Andrew Dickson
> >
> >I have one, 25 mm, real good condition obtained from Ross Mayhew in 1995;
> >presumably "90-mile Beach, New Zealand 35 m sand".
> >It looks like the picture in Powell, who says the correct name is
> >rollandiana Petit, 1853 because Janthina lutea Bennett, 1840 is
> indeterminate.
> >
> >(And I had it under Naticidae. Thanks for waking me up)
> >
> >
> >John Wolff
> >2640 Breezewood Dr.
> >Lancaster, PA 17601, U.S.A.
> >
> Harry G. Lee
> Suite 500
> 1801 Barrs St.
> Jacksonville, Fl. 32204
> USA   904-384-6419
> <[log in to unmask]>
> Visit the Jacksonville Shell Club Home Page at:
> http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/wfrank/jacksonv.htm
>
> oo  .--.  oo  .--.  oo  .--.
>  \\(____)_ \\(____)_ \\(____)_
>   `~~~~~~~` `~~~~~~~` `~~~~~~~`
>