New England native, Florida resident. Blogging about boating, beach-combing, gardening, camping, and knitting. Work for Zazzle as a designer since 2008.
Sand dollars are found in groups along the sandy bottom of the ocean. When alive they have a dark appearance and can be brown, black or purple. I have only ever found one living sand dollar, at Three Sisters islands.
Living Sand Dollar
We always picture them as being white but that happens when they are washed up on shore and bleached by the sun. Those are the ones we search for. You should never keep any living sand dollars…live and let live.
Coloring Printables
These sand dollar images were drawn by me and are offered as a free download. It is meant for personal, home or homeschool use and can not be re-distributed or sold. If you are interested, see my coloring page here.
I have a lot of broken pieces but very few whole sand dollars. The waves can easily break the dried sand dollars into bits.
One day while walking along the beach at Ponce Inlet, a woman walked up to me and gave me a sand dollar she had found! Read that story here.
Jingle shells (Anomia ephippium) are not hard to find on the beaches of Florida. They can also be found from Massachusetts to Brazil according to my seashell ID book.
They have been given the nickname “Mermaid’s Toenails” and I can see why. They are wrinkled and polished looking and come in a variety of translucent colors from shades of orange to dark gray, with white and off-white being common as well.
The “jingle” part of their name comes from the fact that they make a jingling sound when a group of them is collected and shaken around in your pocket or pail. Their thinness does not mean they are fragile, in fact they are very sturdy little shells that measure around one to two inches across. The pretty variety of colors makes them perfect for display or creating crafts and they add interest in a jar of shells.
The mollusk that makes the shell usually attaches itself to something – a rock or even another larger shell – in the ocean.  It also takes the form of the item it attaches to which would explain it’s bumpy appearance.  Then, when the bivalve shell splits apart – for whatever reason, only one half washes up on shore. The other half is still attached to the place where it lived, or breaks since it is the thinner part of the shell.Â
I am not a seashell expert, just an everyday person who has taken an interest in identifying the Florida shells I have collected over the years.
This page is about how and why the seashell identification blog began.
The east coast Florida beaches never offered up a lot of shells, but coquinas and arks were regular finds. Of course back when I took my kids to the beach, I didn’t know any shell names. I knew the popular sand dollar and starfish (sea star) but never found those. And I certainly didn’t give much thought to the marine snails that made the shells.
My Early Blog Photos From 2009
Tiny Coquina Shells
Coquina Rock
“Sea Cookie” Sand Dollar
Cone shell
Lightning Whelk drawing
Elegant Dosinia
Gibbose or Gibbosa Olive
Sundial bottom
Cute shells with stripes and spots
When I began working at Zazzle, back in 2007, I used some of my photography to make products to sell. That led to beginning this blog. I began writing from my New Hampshire home and used photos of the shells I had collected over the years.
Believe me, I barely knew what a blog was, and it’s been a learning experience for me. My about page has more info, so I won’t go into my life history, but these days I use the blog for more than writing about seashells. It is now also part of my online stores where I have linked pages at the top menu of this site.
We Bought a Boat!
Once I returned to Florida to live, I knew I needed to get away from the crowds by escaping to the water. So, we bought a boat. It’s a Hewes Redfisher flats boat. That may mean nothing to you, but basically it’s a small boat with low sides made for fishing. The draft is shallow so we can go into some quite shallow water. It allows us to travel through the backwaters along the Indian River lagoon area and stop at sandy beaches that show up during low tide.
Now, I can also write about my travels to find shells and sea life because I live in Florida again. Instead of only combing the ocean beach, I can now explore islands along the river. Because they are rarely visited by beachcombers, I find lots to photograph.
Help Identifying Seashells
I began trying to identify all kinds of seashells, but have narrowed it down to the shells of Florida. Some of these shells are also found elsewhere, but the variety is too massive to cover well.
Once I had enough photos, I could create pages to help readers identify commonshells they might find while visiting Florida.
I’ve also created free, printable coloring pages for home and homeschool use. I like to think that kids would enjoy learning about marine snails and other sea creatures. See more at the dropdown links at the top of this site.
Some Favorite Island Visits
Here are some truly wonderful and favorite creatures of the sea I encountered while beach-combing.
Giant Red Hermit Crab
Spider Crab
Every day out on the water is a good one, but sometimes I get lucky and see some unique creatures. The Giant Red Hermit Crab was one such find. I see hermit crabs a lot, but none like this one!
The Spider Crab was another odd creature I encountered while beach-combing in shallow water. Click the photos to read more.
My son and I have been camping in our 28 foot long, Grand Design XLS 23LDE camper since 2022. Because we have two cats, and prefer to not have to take them camping, our camping trips are usually only two nights long. For that reason, all of our camping travels have been close to our home,…
We have been camping with our two older cats this winter. They seem to be adjusting to RV living. I have some advice for those who are thinking about camping with a cat.
