SANIBEL ISLAND, Fla. (WINK) — A free diver discovered a shell off the coast of Sanibel Island that turned out to be far rarer than she initially thought.
Jemma Fortune was free diving when she spotted the tip of a shell sticking up from the ocean floor. She initially believed she had found a Junonia, a highly sought-after shell that collectors often spend their entire lives searching for.
“I originally thought it was a Junonia, but I posted it in some shell groups, and everyone was quick to let me know it was something else, which I think is a little cooler,” Fortune said.
After consulting with experts at the National Shell Museum, Fortune learned she had discovered a fossil in the Scaphella family, most likely a Scaphella floridana.
Fortune continued independent research and found the fossil could be the ancient relative of the Junonia.
The fossil shell is just under six inches, potentially exceeding the typical maximum size of five inches documented for the species, Fortune said.
The shell’s condition and preserved coloring make the find particularly remarkable for its age. Fortune was able to identify the fossil as a floridana rather than a Junonia by examining the protoconch, which lacks the ridges characteristic of the modern Junonia.
“A lot of people kind of spend their whole lives looking for a Junonia, so it’s cool to find something even older than that,” Fortune said.
Fortune shared her discovery on social media, where other shell collectors revealed they had found similar specimens without realizing what they were. She continues to document her shell-finding adventures on TikTok under the username JemmaFMiller.