Walking along a beach, I can’t help looking down at my feet to see what the sea has brought in. For me, there’s no greater shell-spotting joy than searching through piles of shelly debris until my gaze finally falls upon a single, perfect cowrie shell with its unmistakable delicate corrugations. Looking for seashells and learning their names is a great way to connect yourself to the ocean and to the living wonders of nature.
Shells are the hardy remains of sea-dwelling animals, called molluscs, that either live down beneath the waves or reside between the tides – these you also have a chance to spot while they’re still alive and crawling around or fixed firmly in place on rocks. Seashells are the molluscs’ external skeletons, or exoskeletons. These are protective, mobile…
You're reading a preview of
The Simple Things (Digital) - 1 Issue, August 2024