Hi Andrew--

I am just an amateur collector, and have no formal education in the field of malacology, but I think we need to be careful about generalizations on what is "typical" of Philippine shells, and "normally" faked data.  I'm not trying to be a Pollyanna in pointing out that there are always a few bad apples in a barrel, but surely there are far more legitimate procurers and dealers than illegitimate.  Were I one of the legitimate dealers, I would be extremely offended by your suggestions.

Debbie Duval

Deborah B. Duval
Family Service Center
Nicholls State University
P. O. Box 2131
Thibodaux, La.  70310

>>> Andrew Grebneff <[log in to unmask]> 2/27/2009 12:08 AM >>>
> Good Morning all; How can you tell of a shell is a true albino?

I believe that the "white" tigers are albino. They have black stripes
and blue eyes.

Beware the whire "albino" shells suddenly streaming out of the
Philippines... these are shells baked or boiled in oil to destroy the
pigments; reducing the bake time can yield pale-colored shells such as
the fleshy-orange Vasum turbinellus sometimes offered for sale. This
is deplorable, but is pretty much typical of Philippines shells, which
normally have faked data.

I have accidentally heat-decolored a batch of Iredalins mirabilis (not
a Provocator!) by letting them boil dry... where the whorls touched
the pan's bottom, white spots were produced.

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