Shell Club grants to help with education and research

Shell Club grants to help with education and research

Despite setbacks with Hurricane Ian and the COVID pandemic, the Sanibel-Captiva Shell Club handed out grants to the Bailey Matthews National Shell Museum and Aquarium and the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF).

The Shell Club’s grant to the Bailey Matthews National Shell Museum and Aquarium is helping the organization rebuild after Hurricane Ian. While the museum’s aquariums suffered major damage in the storm, they are now rebuilt and refreshed with new supporting exhibits. Shell Club members and volunteers often staff the interactive touch pools to teach visitors about the biology and behavior of mollusks.

The grant money will help pay for repairs, improvements and redesigns of the Living Gallery and Great Hall of Shells exhibits.

The grants also contribute to educational programs including the Mollusks on the Move, Snail Search of Lee County, and Sunrise Shell and Mollusk Strolls.

The Sanibel-Captiva Shell Club grant to the SCCF Marine Laboratory was used to conduct research after Hurricane Ian on water quality conditions in the Gulf of Mexico.

Three oceanographic research cruises were conducted in October 2022, January 2023, and March 2023 to evaluate the Gulf of Mexico from Tampa Bay to Marco Island.

The cruises were part of the Florida Institute of Oceanography’s statewide program to provide ship time for researchers.

At each sampling site, (60 total), a salinity, temperature and dissolved oxygen sensor was lowered to the sea floor.

A profile of the water column was obtained. Surface water samples were collected for phytoplankton enumeration and nutrient analysis. After each cruise was completed, the water samples were analyzed for inorganic nutrients (ammonium nitrate, nitrite, ortho-phosphate) and total nitrogen and phosphorus. The analysis is ongoing, but the results indicated that the dinoflagellate that causes red tide was blooming in October 2022, because of upwelling and subsequent heavy runoff from Southwest Florida after Hurricane Ian.

These cruises helped better characterize the nearshore environment, the source for many of the living shells that eventually strand on area beaches.

The Sanibel-Captiva Shell Club said it’s honored to support these organizations and looks forward to continuing its long-standing commitment to providing grants. ¦

The post Shell Club grants to help with education and research first appeared on Fort Myers Florida Weekly .