Conchology Section
Auckland Museum Institute

Our President Glenys Stace welcomed members to a meeting with the topic holiday finds. She noted that the staffroom now used for meetings projects from the outside walls, so if anyone was late and missed the last door opening they could perhaps attract our attention from the outside! (No bricks at the window please).
Nick, the new treasurer, is receiving this year's subscriptions.
The Auckland Museum Marine Department's new curator, Dr Carol Diebel will commence on 6 March 2000. It was agreed that she ahould be invited to the next meeting.

SHELL SHOW
Peter explained that since the dates booked for the Pakuranga Community Centre are not Labour weekend the show will finish on Sunday evening, 29 October, not on Monday 30 October as previously advertised. Please change your fliers, calendars and diaries. There was some discussion on the schedule.
Peggy and Rae have some spare display cases of various sizes. Contact them directly if you need any. Ph Peggy (09) 489 8186 or Rae (09) 479 7831.
Nick explained that he would enter exhibits only if there was good security at night. There have been cases of premeditated theft from overseas shows. Peter promised to look into this.
A final version of the schedule will be sent to everyone in about a month.

TRIPS
The responses to the questionaire were debated. If you want to have your say do so to Glenys ASAP because decisions will be made shortly. The Australian trip to Shell Shows is about to be booked for early July 2000 going to Yeppon, Keppel Bay and Townsville.
Contact Glenys urgently if you wish to join the group.

HOLIDAY FINDS
Joan Willan has just spent several weeks with Richard in Darwin. Joan brought in a specimen of a Magic Jingle Shell, Enigmonia aenigmatica. This was found alive in a long deep cave. It is a fragile irregular bivalve with translucent purple colouring. See Compendium, page 317.
Glad Goulstone showed an historical display from 1966 when Jim collected marine shells. These microscopic shells from Coopers Beach were all neatly stored in match boxes. They included Zemitrella choava, Macrozafra subabnormalis, Rissoina chathamensis and Thoristella oppressa.
Margaret Morley reported a surprise sighting of the uncommon turrid Daphnella cancellata under a low tidal rock at Howick Beach, Auckland. She also showed a selection of the small shells sorted from tangled byssal threads of Perna canaliculus washed up on Ninety Mile Beach.
Bruce Hazelwood brought in an exciting display of the golden volute Provocator mirabilis trawled in depths of 400-500m off the Auckland Islands. Not all were golden, the specimens of the white form were longer and more slender than the golden forms. He is also doing some survey work on the small land snails in the Waitakeres.
John Murphy went to Mauke, Cook Islands in November 1999. He displayed fossil shells of Pleistocene age he had collected in a quarry, among them a cone and a cowrie, Cypraea schilderorum.
Doug Snook is counting the hours down until his retirement when he plans a trip to the beach! He did however bring in a lovely tray of shells, some only recently acquired. The majority were murex, and gem specimens. We admired the Pterynotus bipinnatus, Purpurellus pinniger, a white and coral coloured Spondylus americanus an echinoderm and a magnificent Tibia martinii.
Ian Scott has caught the underwater photography bug from Tony and Jenny Enderby. He hasn't forgotten his collecting skills and set out a great tray of shells from his dives near Leigh. The two Prototyphis eos were buff and white speckled with dark brown, the Chlamys gemmulata in a variety of colours, Buccinulum robustum and Murexul mariae were present at 15-20m. There has recentyl been a "bloom" of rather small Cymatium exaratum exaratum specimens. The specimens attracting the most interest Ian had tentatively identified as Taron mouatae. He remarked on their bright red bodies. The shell features are a better fit for Glaphyrina caudata but all the specimens Ian has found over a period of two years, including some that are fully mature, have been small for this species.
Thanks you to everyone who brought in a tray and gave an explanation. It really makes an interesting evening.

WEBSITE
CSAM website is http://members.tripod.com/~nz_seashells. Peter is now updating this.
The Wellington Club is now on the Internet. Their address is www.actrix.gen.nz/users/littlejn/

WANTED
1. Has anyone an unwanted copy of Cenozoic Mollusca by Beu & Maxwell, please phone Margaret 576 8323.
2. The President of the Malacological Society, Roland Houart, asks if any members have spare species in the family Muricidae, he especially wants Morula Smithi. He offers shells in exchange. If you can help post specimens to: Roland Houart, St. Jobsstraat, 8 B-3400 Landen (Ezemaal) Belgium. Any queries email roland.houart@skynet.be.

NEWSLETTER DEADLINE
Any items or requests shouls be sent to Margaret by the 20th of the month. Unless it is already packed tightly they will be included in the next newsletter.

POIRIERIA
Nancy will soon be returning from her overseas trip raring to go on the memorial edition for Jim Goulstone. Please send Nancy your contribution today. Post to Nancy Smith, 4 Kallista Place, Browns Bay, Auckland.

NEXT MEETING - TUESDAY 14 MARCH 2000 AT THE AUCKLAND MUSEUM
Entry by the Administration door between 7.15 and 7.45pm, no late admittance. Our speaker for the evening was to have been Katherine Szabo but unfortunately (for us) she has accepted an assistant's post in Canberra for a year. We wish her well. The revised topic for the evening will be "A quick jaunt down to Dunedin and back" by Fiona Thomson. This will be a mixture of beach collecting and the echinoderm conference, hopefully with some slides. Please bring a tray of South Island species or other current interest.
If you want a library book phone Glenys, Fiona, or Margaret as they are currently in storage (the books that is not G, F or M!).
HAVE YOU paid your subs. to Nick, delivered or posted your Shell Show slip and field trip questionnaire to Glenys? Thank you to those who have already paid /responded.

Margaret Morley (09) 576 8323