Shelling on the Naples coast: the back story

About Shelling on the Naples coast: the back story

By the ULTIMATE Naples Editorial Team

Southwest Florida is one of the best shelling coasts in the United States. Here is where to look, when to go and what you may and may not take home.

Why this coast is so good

The shallow, gently sloping shelf off Southwest Florida is rich in molluscs, and winter cold fronts and storms push shells up onto the beaches. Sanibel Island, which curves east to west, catches more of them than most beaches, which is why the hunched-over “Sanibel stoop” is a local joke.

Where to look near Naples

Close to home, try the quieter stretches: Barefoot Beach Preserve and Delnor-Wiggins Pass at the north end of the county, Keewaydin Island to the south (by boat only) and Tigertail Beach on Marco Island. Busy city beaches are raked and walked over early, so they are rarely the best hunting grounds.

The best shells turn up after a winter cold front, at low tide, early in the morning.

When to go

Go at low tide, ideally a very low one, and as early in the morning as you can. The day or two after a winter cold front or a blustery westerly wind is the classic time. Look along the wrack line and in the shallow troughs just offshore. Calm summer days usually bring fewer shells.

What you can take home

Take only empty shells. Collecting live shells, sand dollars and starfish is restricted in Florida, and Lee County, which includes Sanibel, bans the collection of live shells altogether. If something is moving or has an animal inside, put it back in the water. Check the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission for current rules.

Know what you found

The Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium on Sanibel is the place to put names to your finds, from lightning whelks and fighting conchs to the rare, much-prized junonia.

Our advice: check the tide table the night before, go at dawn after a cold front, bring a mesh bag and keep only the empty shells; then spend an hour in the Shell Museum to learn what you found.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Shelling on the Naples coast: the back story before you go.