Helmut Nister's suggests that maybe the donor of the shells is the collector
too. In most cases this is not the case. The specimens I have on loan are
paratypes of Thala esperanza Leal and Moore, 1993. The label says
 
D. Piferer
01 May 1973 -
Leg:J. Leal, 1993
 
The original label with the lot, and the original description, states that
Piferer is the collector.
 
Unfortunately, the Florida collection, by not adhering to standard
conventions will end up confusing a lot of people. Suppose that a specimen
with unknown collector, but known donor, is sent on loan. The label will
give a donor and a date donated, which will be read as a collector and a
date collected by the vast majority of researchers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Gary Rosenberg, Ph.D.                     [log in to unmask]
Malacology & Invertebrate Paleontology    gopher://erato.acnatsci.org
Academy of Natural Sciences               http://www.acnatsci.org
1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway            Phone 215-299-1033
Philadelphia, PA 19103-1195 USA           Fax   215-299-1170