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Let us hope that more specimens of this interesting species will turn up in the future!
Many of Oahu's divers call the Barber's Point area Cross' Underwater Supermarket. And with good reason. Not only are there
many excellent areas for the many species of shells but also good areas for lobsters, squid, fish, and turtle. All of which I
manage to harvest as the need arises. This brief article will be devoted strictly to shelling areas. If you want to know
where the lobsters, turtles, etc., spend their leisure time you will have to join my lobster or turtle club and membership
to those clubs are closed for the time being.
The various shelling areas outlined roughly on the accompanying portion of Coast and Geodetic Survey chart 4410 reflect the
many different types of ocean bottom in the Barber's Point area. Probably for this reason there are innumerable species of
shells in the area, varying from the common Nerita picea in the splash zone along the shore to the extremely rare Conus
circumactus (formerly pulchellus) and Cypraea cernica found in deep water in Area 6.
Take for example the splendid cone, Conus prometheus Hwass (which is considered to be the world's largest cone). This shell,
while not rare, is infrequently secured by the Tipos Indicenas tribes, being worn as both an ornament and symbol of wealth by
women of the tribe. The tops of the large cones are neatly sliced off and dangle from strings of beads or leather thongs down
the back of the wearer or hang between their breasts. As a well-to-do native will exchange as much as a full grown cow for a
fine specimen of this shell, it is little wonder that collectors find them difficult to obtain.
Also very popular are the smaller and often rare Cypraea of the region such as zonaria gambiensis, picta, sanguinolenta,
petitiana, and even the West African form of lurida which are formed into strings for head and neck decoration, suplimented
with the more readily secured Cypraea annulus.
To a dedicated collectors, such use of rarities may well seem a desecration of fine shells. However, one had best look at it
philosophically with the thought that the major purpose of shells (once the animal who created them has ceased to have use
for its home) is to bring pleasure to the possessor either asthetically or scientifically and who can say who enjoys them
the most, the native or the specialist.
many shells that come from deeper waters.
We left the Navy Base in Central Zambales at 5 A.M. on December 14, 1963 and traveled south to Subic Bay. There we boarded a
40' boat that I had chartered for the day. Ten Shell Collectors (including wives) and my two children went along on this
trip.
We traveled out of Subic Bay by 8 A.M. and around the southern tip of Zambales along the West Coast of Luzon or South China
Sea to the first big Bay on the coast.
It is called Selangium Bay and is nearly 2 miles long by 2000 feet wide, all reefs and quiet water. We anchored a few hundred
yards in the Bay in about 40' of water at 10 A.M. The reef came up at a 60 degree angle here and you are in 5 to 10 feet of
water. I was the first one in the water and soon picked up a large purple mouth Pleuroploca trapezium that my little girl had
seen from the boat through a view box (or lookie-lookie box). After handing her this shell I swam but a few yards and found a
large 8" pair of Lambis chiragra. I felt this would prove to be a good shelling spot, after such quick luck. (Altogether we
got 8 specimens of L. chiragra)
In two hours of diving for shells in sand, under rocks and breaking coral with a crow bar we all came up with about 100
species of shells over 1" long. On my way back to the boat the last rock I flipped over had a 4" tiger cowry under it much to
my surprise since most of the Cypraea tigris we get in the Philippine are 2" to 3". This was the largest specimen I had seen
outside of Philippines.
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Raw material coco shells rapa - rapana nassa earing shell inlay shell tiles cyprea vitilus murex huastillum shell heishie hammer shells shells bracelet rapa - rapana capis hanging lamp cyprea mauretiana hammer conus sowerby hair spondylus.
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