Kids’ Blog: Shelling in Sanibel

Thank you to the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum for providing complimentary tickets for my family.  All opinions are my own.

Guest Author:  Our kid blogger, Messi Jr., is an eleven year old fifth grader who loves travel and soccer.

My family recently took a really fun trip to Sanibel, Florida.  Sanibel is known as one of best shelling beaches in the world. Over my trip, I went shelling many times and learned a lot about shells. Today, I will share to you all the best ways of finding and learning about shells in Sanibel, Florida.

Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum

At the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum in Sanibel, my family and I learned about all the shells we were finding on the beach.  We went to the Tank Talk where a professional naturalist and sheller talked about the shells and what could be inside.  An important thing to know is that if you find something living in a shell, it should be carefully placed in the water and not thrown into the water as this could harm the creature living inside. After going to the National Shell Museum, I now have a clearer understanding of shells and could name almost all of the shells we collected.  With all that we learned there, I only wish we had gone to the National Shell Museum at the beginning of our weekend in Sanibel.

Shelling at the Beach

On our trip, I tried different ways of shelling.  On our first morning, we went to the beach at sunrise and looked in the water and on the shoreline.  We had our best result by far when went in the water early in the morning.  A good tip is to wade into the water and dig through the sand with your feet until you feel a shell.  Then, scoop it up with your hands.  When shelling in the water or on the beach, it is always a good idea to bring a mesh bag to keep all the shells you want to keep.

Shelling After a Storm

Although there weren’t any storms during our trip, we learned at the Tank Talk that the best time to shell is early in the morning after a storm. During a storm, all the big shells from farther into the ocean will wash up onto shore.  Some of these may include the rarest shell in Sanibel called junonia, which is a shell found extremely far and low in the ocean.  This shell is so rare that when someone finds one, it is often reported in the local news.

Conclusion

I had a really fun trip to Sanibel, Florida. I liked shelling and learning about all the shells at the National Shell Museum.  The best time to find shells is early in the morning after a storm or by wading a few feet into the ocean.  My family and I found such great shells.  I hope we go back to Sanibel soon.