Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium

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Sanibel, FL
Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium

BMNSM&A is a natural history museum, and the only US museum devoted primarily to shells and mollusks.
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The non-profit Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum features more than 30 exhibits of mollusks from around the world. Exhibits are devoted to shells in art and history, shell habitat, rare specimens, fossil shells, common Southwest Florida shells, and more. Explore the aquarium gallery filled with living mollusks from around the world, including the Giant Pacific Octopus, cuttlefish, sea hares, i

nhabitants of the Great Barrier Reef, fighting conchs, and the rare Junonia. Pop up into the middle of an oyster bed, then engage with animals in the two Touch Pools! The Museum Store offers a wide selection of shell books, exquisite jewelry, fine home décor, and unique gifts.

09/04/2026

The Baggy Pen Shell lives buried in the sand in the tropical warm waters of the Pacific and Indian Ocean and no two are alike. Today, learn about the unique Baggy Pen Shell, 𝘗𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘴𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘢, with Science Director and Curator, Dr. José H. Leal. Visit shellmuseum.org/exhibits to learn more about the fascinating shells in the Great Hall of Shells.

09/03/2026

There's still time to register for our next Beat the Heat Beach Walk on Tuesday, 9/8! Stroll Sanibel's shore, learn from Museum educators, and find some incredible shells along the way. Learn more at ShellMuseum.org/learn-and-experience/field-education.

As a reminder, please note that we will be open from 10am to 5pm on Sunday, 9/6, and from 12-4pm on Labor Day.

09/02/2026

The Specter Clam Revisited: Most marine bivalves (clams, mussels, oysters, etc.) are filter-feeders, straining large amounts of water to get their food, usually microscopic plants (phytoplankton). One of the exceptions is a group of clams that prey on small invertebrates, such as crustaceans. These clams, known as septibranch bivalves, use a flexible, muscular “wall”, or septum, that acts as a pump, creating a quick negative pressure that sucks in nearby prey.

The Specter Clam, *Dilemma spectralis* Leal, 2008, a deep-sea dweller from off Vanuatu in the SW Pacific is one of those predatory bivalves. Preserved Specter Clams had whole crustaceans in their stomachs. There is a chance, given that *Dilemma* clams live permanently attached to rocks, that Specter Clams may use some form of chemical attraction to lure nearby prey.

Caption: *Dilemma spectralis*. Left, entire preserved clam. Scale line = 5 mm; center, shell removed; right, drawing (by Kimberly Nealon) of animal showing dissected stomach with prey (isopod crustacean) and incurrent siphon (opening through which prey is ingested.)

Read the original article here:https://shellmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/LEAL_2008_New_Genus_Dilemma_Zootaxa_1764.pdf

09/01/2026

Join us next Tuesday, September 8th, for a Beat the Heat Beach Walk! Participants will explore the beach at Gulfside City Park on Sanibel Island and learn about various local shells and mollusks. $15 for adults; $5 for Members and youth. Register at ShellMuseum.org/beach-walks

08/31/2026

These tiles are found on the sidewalk just outside a seafood restaurant in Fort Myers, Florida. The tiles consist of cement peppered with small to medium-sized shells of what looks like a graded (sorted by size) selection of Florida fossil shells, mostly bivalves. The tiles are certainly made by scattering the shells in molds with wet cement, letting the blocks dry, then polishing them. The tiles show cross-sections of shells deployed at different angles, making it a fun identification game for shell aficionados(as). So far, we could identify a few Venus clams (possibly Cross-barred Venus [*Chione elevata*]), several types of ark shells, and at least one unidentified barnacle carapace. But what is the larger, round cross-section in the center of the right-hand image? It looks like a section of a bivalve shell with narrow, paired ribs, such as a Cut-ribbed Ark (*Anadara secticostata*) or a Ravenel’s Scallop (*Euvola raveneli*). What do you think?

08/28/2026

Today, learn about Lewis Moon Snails with Senior Aquarist, Claire.

08/27/2026

Explore the world of shells and mollusks through new homeschool programs! From fossils to diversity and adaptations to human connection, students will gain in-depth knowledge about the second largest phylum of animals through hands-on lessons, field activities, and more. After the program, students will have the opportunity to explore the Living Gallery of Aquariums and Great Hall of Shells on their own.

Homeschool Half-Days programs are offered on select Thursdays, September-December, 2-4pm for ages 5-8 and 9-12. Program registration is $25 ($15 for Museum members) and accommodates one homeschool student and one guardian. Students must be supervised by their guardians at all times.

For more information and to register, visit https://shellmuseum.org/learn-and-experience/homeschool/

08/26/2026

A new exhibit on X-rays and shells* depicting the creative work of Jim Wehtje** is among the temporary exhibits planned by the Museum for the 2026–27 season. Jim’s images combine X-rays and color photography to create unique images of shells that are at one time elegant and informative.

For instance, the illustration below shows three images of a Bubble Marginella (Bullata bullata), a gastropod species endemic to the coast of Brazil. The full X-ray image on right clearly shows the columellar folds inside the shell. Present in many gastropod shells, columellar folds are raised threads or ridges positioned along the central pillar or shaft known as columella.

Keep an eye out for Jim Wehtje’s upcoming exhibit on X-rays and shells at the National Shell Museum & Aquarium!

*Check a classic (1992) article by Conklin & Leal on shell x-rays published in Sea Frontiers Magazine athttps://shellmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Leal_Conklin_1992_Sea_Frontiers_-1.pdf

**Check Jim Wehtje’s website at https://jimwehtje.photoshelter.com/index

08/25/2026

Join us at the Museum for mimosas and great shopping during the Sanibel Island Sunrise Sale on September 5th at 7:09am.

Our shelling supplies will be 10% off - stock up now to ensure you’re prepared to explore the shores of Sanibel and Captiva Islands!

As always, Museum Members will get 20% off!

08/24/2026

Here are three views each of the White Baby Ear (*Sinum perspectivum*, top) and the Brown Baby Ear (*Sinum maculatum*, bottom). These two species can be found along the beaches of Southwest Florida, but the latter species is rarer than the former. Notice the difference in height in the two species. As their common names imply, the two species also differ by their respective background colors, which are partially hidden in these images by the thin *periostracum* (the lacquer-like outer shell layer) on each shell. Illustrations: James Kelly. Read more about Southwest Florida mollusks and their shells at https://shellmuseum.org/shells-and-science/shells-guide/

Address

3075 Sanibel-Captiva Road
Sanibel, FL
33957

Telephone

+12393952233

Website

http://www.shellmuseum.org/, https://linktr.ee/Shell_Museum_and_Aquarium

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