There are many things in life that will catch your eye, but only a few will catch your heart...pursue those. ~ Michael Nolan

Even my shell sistah Pam of iLove Shelling couldn't resist a road trip up from Sanibel to Manasota Key for a little shark's tooth action.
(credit:  www.iLoveShelling.com)
All hobbies & interests have different levels of dedication.  Shelling is the perfect example of this.  You have the average beach goer that doesn't know anything more about shells other than "it's pretty".  Then the next level would be the enthusiast.  This person  knows to shell at low tide, has some basic shelling equipment, & they know what a junonia is.  Then there are the fanatics  who are willing to travel to the good shelling spots,  they knows the Latin scientific names of most shells, & are into quality not quantity because their shell collection has now taken over their garage.


  Collecting shark's teeth is no different. On any given day on Manasota Key there will be hundreds of beach-goers walking the shoreline looking for shark's teeth.  The casual shark's tooth hunter  is usually looking in the  shallow water and  on the surf line for shark's teeth. They are not really sure if what they are finding is a rock or a shark's tooth but it doesn't matter because...Hey,  I'm on the beach and not at work.   Once their passion grows for finding shark's teeth there is a need to aquire equipment. The enthusiast now has a sand-flea rake aka shark's tooth shovel to really get in the game.  Now they are digging & sifting on the water's edge making some real progress.  Then we have  the fossil big dawgs that scuba dive off the coast of Manasota Key to find the big Megalodon shark's teeth.  Some have their own boats or kayaks.  Others hire a charter that takes them out to dive The Boneyard.  The Boneyard is an ancient riverbed off the coast of Manasota Key that holds an amazing amount of fossils especially shark's teeth.

 Personally, I love my shark's teeth but I am a casual collector.  I enjoy the walk on the beach & the sunset as much as I enjoy finding the teeth themselves although I do visit the beach more than the average person.  But I sure enjoy the video clips & fish tales of the more serious divers.  Would I love to find the big 6" Megalodon?  You bet but I'm not a scuba diver.  I have too many dental fillings that under 10 feet of water feel like they are about to explode in my mouth and I am also somewhat claustrophobic.  And Hello.  Shark's teeth come from....... sharks, big duh!  I'm happy to walk on the shore & pick up a handful to dump in my jar.



Located out of Englewood, FL is Man Overboard Charters. Capt. Rick Warren is available for scuba, fishing, or just sight seeing charters.




Capt. Jamie Bostwick of Aristakat Charters has been on the local waters most of his life. Even when he is not working you'll find him on the water fishing or diving - He does what he loves.




I met Devorah today on the beach. She is an artist that lives in the Englewood area.  She picked up her bag of shark's teeth in about an hour on Blind Pass Beach on Manasota Key.


She has no fancy shell shovel or digging tools.  Heck, she didn't even wear a bathing suit.  She's just enjoying a nice walk up the beach and finding a few shark's teeth in the process.


Comments

  1. Kim@Snug HarborSeptember 23, 2011 at 10:31 PM

    Did Pam just drive up and visit you? Lucky girls! I wish I were there with y'all! Love the last shot of the sunset - is that you??

    ReplyDelete
  2. DellaSeptember 24, 2011 at 2:50 AM

    I wish I had the good health to get to the beach even half as often as you do.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousSeptember 24, 2011 at 7:11 AM

    Hi, love your post on shark's teeth. My husband and I want to know why they are black in color. Is that the normal color of shark's teeth. I guess we just asumed they were white. Could you shed some light on this. My guess is the salt water turns them black.
    Thanks,
    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  4. rjerdeeSeptember 24, 2011 at 12:37 PM

    Hi Karen,
    My grandsons are into hunting sharks' teeth every Christmas when they visit us from Iowa. I can see a future of diving for sharks' teeth for them...enjoyed the two videos!
    Personally, I'm in your "that's a pretty shell!" category of shell enjoyment. Picked up 12 sharks' teeth with my grandsons one day...they were SO proud of me!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. iLoveShellingSeptember 25, 2011 at 10:57 PM

    Wow! That makes me want to scuba for them too. Cool video.

    ReplyDelete

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