Andrew Vik
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Dear Jan:

I collect all groups of shelled mollusks from land, sea and freshwater.
My favorite bivalve is Mytilus edulis (in garlic butter). All joking aside,

most folks prefer a more specialized collection. I'd hazard to say that
half of all shellers collect only marine gastropods, and half of those
again
restrict their interest to the popular trophy families (i.e., Cypraeidae,
Conidae,
Volutidae, etc.).

My favorite bivalve families include the Veneridae, Cardiidae, and the
Mytilidae.
I find them appealing because they are ubiquitous. No matter what sea you
collect in,
you can find a few species from these families.

Topic: Bivalves live at all depths, but as with most other groups of
animals,
the greater number of species inhabit shallower depths where more food
can be found and more ecological niches exist.

Yours, Andrew V.