It bears reminding that Strombus gigas is listed in CITES (the treaty of
which the US is a signatory, along with 100+ other nations; for those who
might not be familiar with the term, CITES is the Convention In Trade of
Endangered Species).
 
Strombus gigas, as well as Genus Tridacna, is protected from collection
under CITES.  Anyone attempting to bring S. gigas or its byproducts into
the U.S. without a license is violating the treaty, risking a stiff fine
from Fish and Wildlife.
 
I know it's strange that native folk can leave heaps of discarded conch
shells on the beach while collectors can't legally take even one.  However,
it's the law virtually worldwide, regardless of local regulations.  I would
not recommend bringing Strombus gigas home.
 
Jenny
 
 
> We had contradictory reports about whether shelling was allowed. In fact
> there are several marine reserves where shelling is completely forbidden.
> We went to the South near Plasencia where there was a huge sandy beach,
we
> were outside protected areas. There were some regulations, however,
> regarding season and size to collect specific species (e.g. Strombus
> gigas). There was no check at the airport on leaving the country.
>
 People kept telling us that there were no shells anymore in
> Belize. In fact there were a lot of Strombus gigas which are collected by
> local fishermen as they are eaten and prepared in various culinary ways.
> You keep finding small atolls heaped with shells of Strombus gigas that
> fishermen discarded after drilling a hole and taking the meat out.