Seashells ex Pisce

● While walking along a beach, you may have noticed colorful seashells scattered in the sand. It is said that there are about 100,000 kinds of mollusk shells, including those from clams, conchs, cowries, oysters and snails. Many people collect seashells as a hobby, and they know that usually the shells of best quality are those taken with the animal still alive inside.

But some rare and valuable cone shells are difficult to obtain, as certain mollusks live in places that are just about impossible for men to reach. However, shells of this type sometimes are obtained from fish. The shells are discovered when the fish are caught and opened up. The Du Saval cone shell, reported to be one of the rarest in the world, came to light when the only known specimen was obtained from a fish caught off Mauritius. Thus it is a seashell ex pisce, literally meaning “out of fish.”