How true, Emilio. Rare molluscs seem to "migrate"
sooooo easily!

I've seen that Hawaii's Cypraea tessellata is being
reported as collected alive in the Philippines!
AND they are a giant race of checkerboard cowries!
What a lucky, lucky break for the 'dealers' getting
their shells from that area!

(THAT was sarcasm, in case someone didn't detect it.)

Of course, tessellata does NOT grow in Philippine waters.
At the very best, these were live-collected shells from
Hawaii that were flown to that area, "salted" onto a dive
site and then "found." That's the very BEST it could be!

More likely, these are counterfeit creations with a piece of
snail flesh jammed into them and passed off to the ignorant.
I hope that there aren't too many CONCH-Lers caught up in
such shenanigans.

Caveat Emptor!


makuabob (the 'Bob' who dived a lot at Makua)

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