I get Murex pecten from the Philippines wrapped in toilet paper (unused as Andrew stated....) and
they arrive with no damages.

Spondylus liguaefelis is probably one of the worst shells to pack. I already hate to pack our
Spondylus ictericus....

Once I've tried expandable foam, used to fill gaps on walls and pipes, to pack a Strombus goliath.
It was too messy and expensive.

We use mostly bubble wrap combined with thin wrapping paper and zip lock bags. The most important
thing is to pack everything in a sturdy box, leaving space between the shells and the inside walls.
I am not very fond of loose material as shredded paper, small pieces of foam (larger peanuts are ok,
but shells must be packed in plastic bags).

But even being very careful sometimes breakage happens (especially because we need help from our
employees).

I remember asking Len Hill if he had too many complaints about broken shells. He looked at me with a
very offended face and said "I have never had a single broken shell!". Indeed, his parcels were the
best ever, looking like a candy box!

But not everyone takes care with packing. I've received the most unusual packing material, from
China I got something that looked like old coach stuffing, from Senegal I got a foam tray all
wrapped in plastic tape (no box), but the worse was one with old clothes - including a piece of
dirty underwear!

Marcus

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