Posted: May 27 2025
I made this trip to Sebastian Inlet in hopes of observing a live Strombus pugilis form alatus, a species that is reappearing north from Palm Beach County along Florida's east coast after disappearing along this range about 35 years ago. My interest was attracted by several recent observations reported on iNaturalist. Prior to the observations on iNaturalis the last most northerly documented presence of this species was at Ft. Pierce as reported by Mikkelsen, Paula M., Mikkelsen, Paul S. and Karlen, David J. 1995. Molluscan Biodiversity In The Indian River Lagoon, Florida. Bulletin of Marine Science, 57(1): 94-127.
My search area was on the flats on the southern side of the inlet channel. The county line runs through the inlet and the south side is Indian River County. The habitat is one of soft sand and sparse to thick seagrasses. I timed my visit for a -0.3 tide.
My search was limited to material visible to the eye. No screening or dredging. Overall, very few live mollusks were observed.
Oh, and it rained. You can see the dark clouds passing away.
