|
|
Frog shell
Caroline Is.:
Recently Mr. C. N. Cate presented me two walkeri from Moen Is. in the Truk Is. (coll. Schilder No. 17135 and 17136); they
formerly belonged to a series of fifteen similar shells dredged by R. Willis in the harbour in January 1962. These two shells
are "pellucid" like the dead glossy cowries dredged in Honolulu harbour, and exhibit a similar white chalk in the aperture:
there, the conditions of preservation in the harbour of Moen Is. must be about equal to those in Honolulu. The specimens
undoubtedly belong to walkeri (surabajensis) and not to bregeriana: the discovery of this far-off population of walkeri in
the central Caroline Is. is not very surprising, as other typically Malayan cowry species also spread to western Micronesia,
e.g. Erronea ovum Gmelin and E. onyx Linnaeus to Palau and Guam respectively.
Northern Melanesia:
Mrs. K. Matcott of Mooloolaba, Queensland informed me by letter in March 1963, that she possesses a "surabajensis" from New
Britain; as I have never examined the shell personally, the reliability of this indication seems to need confirmation.
Fiji:
Mr. W. O. Cernohorsky has quoted walkeri bregeriana from New Caledonia and Fiji, in his recently published Catalogue of
Living Cypraeidae (Frankfurt-Main 1963). In fact, since 1962 at least eight bregeriana have been collected in Fiji, all off
the West Coast (Nadi and Momi) facing towards the chief habitat of bregeriana, New Caledonia; especially Mr. A. Jennings has
dredged, at the islands Wading, Akuilau, and Namotu (20 miles off Nadi) several dead and living specimens, one oliviform
shell included of which I could examine the radula (Mr. Cernohorsky presented me a shell from Momi, coll. Schilder No. 17154,
which is 17 mm. long). All specimens show the typical orange base, often darker brown in the center of the inner lip, and the
peculiar white specks on base and margins, but they are much smaller (16 to 21 mm., mean 18 mm.) than typical bregeriana from
New Caledonia (20 to 33 mm., mean 25 mm.). These shells look like a population displaced far from its original habitat in New
Caledonia, where bregeriana is less rare, to an area with less favorable environments, as it is in the two dwarf Erosaria
ocellata Linnaeus from Tjilanat Eureun, South West Java widely separated from their Indian relations (see 1938, Prodrome, p.
138).
South East New Guinea:
If bregeriana could spread from New Caledonia to Fiji, it probably also could spread to North West: therefore I now do not
doubt its occurrence in Joanett Is., Louisiade Archipelago, from which locality Smith (1888, Journ. de Conchyl. 36:313) has
described three bregeriana of 21 to 22 mm.
The indications of habitat: Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Victoria, New Zealand, and Tahiti evidently are erroneous.
The appended map clearly shows the advancement of our knowledge concerning the distribution of Erronea walkeri since World
War II. It should encourage malacologists to further research.
Having a special interest in mollusks of the West African coastline, I have inquired as to why shells from that area are
often so difficult to obtain. The above pictures graphically show the reason.
The natives of the area seem to have a real passion for the use of sea shells as personal decorations, many collectors'
treasures being used as ornaments.
The list of shells found in the various areas was compiled by Evelyn Gage by researching all back issues of Sean Raynon
Sabado.
From the very beginning, a nautical chart (or map of underwater areas) has been one of my shelling aids. Chart symbols permit
easy determination of areas to locate various type shells such as sand dwellers, or those that live in coral, on rocks, or in
sea weeds.
Area 1 of the chart is the Ala Moana Reef, once an excellent source for many shells. Since the dredging to fill Magic Island
a great deal of the area has been destroyed. However, the Western end of the area is beginning to return as a shell area.
frog shell,decorative shell,conus sowerby,paua,leis puka,shell hawaiian,shellcrafts,lambis crocata,heishe pokalet,frog shell
Frog shell gift items abalone nautilus strombus ovula tortella toribellum fashion lamps murex huastillum troka puka shell spondylus tsenensis black olive novelty mop murex ramusus lambis - lambis natural shells beads wallets shell troka.
frog shell
Shells
Jewellery
|
