If you have an interest in shelling, you will need to visit the Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum near Ft. Myers, Florida. This museum is the only shell museum in America. It features a collection of shells and mollusks from all around the world. In fact, there are more than thirty mollusk exhibits alone and over two million shells displayed.
The shells are grouped together by the geographical location in which they are found. You will learn how people once used the shells for tools, decorations and even clothes. Any question that you might have about shells will be answered.
One of the highlights of the museum is the children's learning lab. This consists of many different hands on activities and displays that will enchant the kids for hours. There is even a live shell exhibit in which the children will enjoy seeing animals they may not see otherwise. They have a shell movie that plays continually in the learning lab.
Of great interest is a featured shell movie that is offered for your viewing enjoyment. This DVD lasts for approximately thirty minutes and was produced by a local woman for her grandchildren. It is full of lots of scientific information that will truly become an educational experience for the whole family.
Each visitor receives a paper that will help to identify different shells. So even if a shell museum isn't normally your kind of thing, you will at least be able to identify the many shells you will find as you stroll along the beach.
