Florida's Seashells: A Beachcomber's Guide

I live in the Southwest low desert. I know about snakes, black widows and scorpions but not much about seashells. I wanted to start a shell collection from the various coasts and I started with Florida and the Gulf Coast area. This book was recommended by a Florida shell collector and seller. I read the book and began by buying shells that I was familar with because of a previous shell collection. This guide book is very well written. It starts by giving the reader a little bit of geographical information about Florida's best coastline area to search for and find shells. It also provides readers info about which kinds of shells are found in these areas. The authors even tell readers when the best times are to find shells. It is a well organixed book. It has detailed info about each kind of shell and photos to help you in your search for them. The authors are a husband and wife team...she is the photographer among other things. There are interesting "tidbits" on each page..."Did you know" areas that tell about the inhabitants of the shell. Did you know that it is illegal to remove a living shell from any beach in Florida? I am so glad that I bought this book. I now have whelk and fighting conch and crown conch...tulip and apple snails...so many beautiful shells are found on Florida's beaches. And I now have a better understanding of what lived in each shell. We all look for the best shells but each scar or small hole on a shell represents a hardship that gastropod, etc had to endure. And if you are out searching for shells it is small enough to carry with you. I am very satisfied with my purchase.

I just received this book and I cannot say enough good things about it! It’s so thorough, it tells you the types of shells, has pictures and even shows you the areas of beaches that each shell is found and if it’s common or uncommon. I was shocked to find that the fossil shells I’ve found on sanibel have been extinct for 2million+ years!! It also shows the difference in pictures between similar types of shells! This is a must if you’re in FL and like shelling.

Very informative and just what I was looking for. Easy to flip through and find out more about each shell with photos for identifying each one.

A very handy reference guide

The book is well researched, great photos and a very informative guide for shelling in Florida. It's also a slim, fairly light weight and highly packable for a beach vacation. Recommended. For in-depth information regarding additional beach plants, animals and more, the authors have written a more extensive book that includes the same shell information. "Florida's Living Beaches - A guide for the Curious Beachcomber"

My teen loves collecting and identifying shells, and it keeps her off her phone so I am here for it. I figured this guide would be a great addition to her Easter basket. Love that it features full color photos. My issue is with how it's bound. The outer part of the book is way bigger than the pages inside. Handling it is awkward.

Chock full of great photos and information. Highly recommend

Great reference guide! Highly recommend it.