Auckland Shell Club

Hi fellow shellers!
Shell collecting really is a wonderful healthy past-time, getting out to places most normal people don't bother to go to!
Margaret Morley, Alison (my twin), and I have just spent a week in the far north. The cyclone that hit Fiji managed to bring up a small wash up on some beaches...
. Coopers Beach - Dosinia anus
. Tokerau Beach - Cantharidus purpureus, Cominella adspersa, Struthiolaria papulosa
. East Beach - millions of Zethalia zelandica, including many juveniles.
. Rarawa Beach - Fusitriton magellanicus laudandus, Charonia lampas, Cymatium parthenopeum, Alcithoe arabica depressa, Cymatium exaratum (broken), Cabestana spengleri, Semicassis pyrum, and one very nice Adelphotectonica reevei
. Karikari Beach was covered in large old Tucetona laticostata
. Mahinepua - Pinctada margaritifera
. Uretiti Beach - many Dosina anus and broken juvenile Struthiolaria papulosa
Thank goodness Margaret is here to help me spell the names!
The rock seam at Coopers Beach has been under water so we only found a couple more of the puzzling rocks this trip. The weather was great. We had a visit to Bob Grange and he is doing well apart from a twinge in the hip.

I will not be at the April meeting because my twin and I are going on a bird watching trip, boarding the Spirit of Enderby in Tauranga on the 30th March and sailing up to Tokyo via Norfolk Is. New Caledonia, Solomon Is. Caroline Is. and some islands off the coast of Japan. We had planned this trip for 2011 but the discount to go this year was too tempting! We return on 3/May so will see you all then.
Doug and Judith should also be back for the May meeting, and we may have a visit from the Sudlows who live in Dargaville. They are members of our club and have collected similar mystery rocks from Coopers Beach.

Have a great month and we'll see you in May.
Happy shelling,
Heather

March Meeting
Heather treated us to another entertaining talk about her recent trip to Western Australia with Jenny Raven from the Wellington Shell Club.
They explored the coastal region south of Perth - an area of beautiful remote beaches and unusual rock formations, as well as some amazing caves. Jewel Cave in the Margaret River region is famous for having one of the longest straw stalactites (5.8 meters) found in any tourist cave in the world.
In Fremantle they participated in the Eighth Australian National Shell Show, and enjoyed the usual warm hospitality of the local shell collectors. One of Heather's photos was of nine current Shell Club presidents all together.
To accompany her talk, Heather brought in several stunning display trays of Australian shells.

Margaret Morley brought in a very unusual Nassarius that she found near the jetty at Motuihe Island. It is not a recognised NZ species, and despite having some very detailed Nassarius books at hand it is yet to be identified. Margaret will return to the spot one day to look for more, but it is probably a foreign shell that someone discarded there.

Next Meeting
202 Gillies Avenue, Epsom at 7:30pm on Tuesday 13th of April (doors open at 7pm)
Margaret, Peter, and possibly Luen will be hosting "buzz groups" that focus on specific subjects. IE, all present divide into smaller groups which spend about 30 mins with each host. This allows for a more interactive experience.
Margaret's topic will be animals that live in tubes (including molluscs, tube worms, and other species that live in a pre used burrow), and Peter will be testing your knowledge of NZ shells.

Shell related news and items of interest (Eg. recent finds, media articles, etc.) are always appreciated.
A large variety of shells will be on sale. Bring anything you would like to sell - remember, one man's rubbish may be another man's treasure!
Supper will be provided, as well as our regular shell raffle kindly donated by Doug & Judith Snook.

Shell Auction - Saturday 23/October
The Albany Hall was booked for most Saturdays this year, so we were given little choice with dates for our annual shell auction.
But Patricia managed to book us in for Saturday 23/October (Labour weekend) before it also became unavailable - we hope that day will suit everyone!
If you would like to sell at the auction then please register your interest with Peter Poortman (Ph: 09 817 1397), preferably with an indication of how many lots you would like to enter.

Poirieria Magazine
We welcome all contributions to our club magazine 'Poirieria'.
Please think about what you could provide. Anything related to shells or collecting would be greatly appreciated - Eg. shelling trips/finds, personal observations/tips, scientific research, historic anecdotes, notable washups, etc.
Please send to Jan Munroe at kevandjan@slingshot.co.nz, or 42 Black Teal Close, Albany, North Shore 0632. Contact Patricia Langford on (09) 479 6149 if you have any queries.

Club Library
We have an extensive collection of books, magazines, and scientific publications available, as well as a biological microscope.
A new book "NZ Coastal Invertebrates Volume 1" will soon be added to our library. This is a magnificent book, about one third of which relates to Molluscs.

Subscriptions
Last reminder for anyone who has not yet paid their subscription - they are now overdue.
Contact our Treasurer Luen Jones on (09) 834 5195 if you have any queries.

Other Club News
. Markus Niiranen, a shell collector from Finland, is looking for Bursidae Cassidae Ranellidae and Maurea species from New Zealand. He is interested in all species from these families from common to rare, but would prefer specimens with good collect data. If you have some specimens from these families for sale (recent or fossil), please contact Markus at markusni@hotmail.com.

. Items of interest for the monthly newsletter are always welcome - email to peter.poortman@xtra.co.nz, or post to 26 Pendlebury Street, Green Bay, Auckland 0604.

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