[NHCOLL-L:2474] Re: [Fwd: Sea Shell damage]

[Shirley S Albright]

Hi,

Yes, Byne's Disease is suspect.   I guess I may have been thinking about 
the description of "holes" in the shells.   My experience with Byne's 
Disease has been restricted to that powdery coating you described 
accompanied by a general weakening of the entire shell where the coating 
occurs.   Also, it would be helpful to know the time frame in which the 
condition first appeared.....

Shirley Albright

Richard Rego wrote:

> Hello All,   
>  
>  Could it be Byne's Disease?  Shells kept in a humid environment and 
> in wooden drawers or wooden lined cabinets (or other acid producing 
> materials, like unbuffered storage trays) will become etched over time 
> from acids that condense on the shells.  Usually a powdery coating 
> will form upon the shells.  This "disease" is most noticable on glosst 
> shells such as Cypraeidae and Ovulidae, however it affects almost all 
> other shells.
>  
>     If you see this type of damage, then there is no reversing it.  
> You can, however, stop the further damage by storing the shells 
> properly in an acid free environment.  Before transferring the 
> specimens to new storage, they should all be immersed in distilled 
> water to remove any acidic residue from the shells.
>  
>     A quick Google (or similar) search should bring up a couple of 
> articles on Byne's Disease, most done by advanced private shell 
> collectors.  The Conchologist's of America website 
> http://coa.acnatsci.org/conchnet/ has a couple of articles on Byne's 
> Disease.
>  
>     Hope this helps, as that's what the problem sounds like to me.
>  
> R.J. Rego
>  
>
>     ----- Original Message -----
>     From: Shirley S Albright <mailto:shirley.albright at sos.state.nj.us>
>     To: NHCOLL-L at lists.yale.edu <mailto:NHCOLL-L at lists.yale.edu> ;
>     jfahey at SIUE.EDU <mailto:jfahey at SIUE.EDU>
>     Sent: Wednesday, November 17, 2004 9:00 AM
>     Subject: [NHCOLL-L:2472] [Fwd: Sea Shell damage]
>
>     Hello listers!
>
>     I'm forwarding this request for help from another list.   Since
>     Jerry may not be a subcriber to this list, perhaps your answers
>     could be forwarded to both lists as well as to Jerry.   Thanks a
>     bunch.
>
>     Frankly, I don't know what this could be....unless there is some
>     kind of acidic condensation.   Is it possible the holes just were
>     not noticed previously?   There are invertebrate borers which
>     leave circular and subcircular holes in shell.
>
>     Any suggestions?
>
>     Shirley Albright
>     New Jersey State Museum
>
>     -------- Original Message --------
>     Subject: 	Sea Shell damage
>     Date: 	Tue, 16 Nov 2004 15:58:33 -0600
>     From: 	Jerry Fahey <jfahey at SIUE.EDU>
>     Reply-To: 	Museum discussion list <MUSEUM-L at HOME.EASE.LSOFT.COM>
>     To: 	MUSEUM-L at HOME.EASE.LSOFT.COM
>
>
>
>There are small pin holes showing up in quite a few of our sea shell 
>collection.
>Is anyone aware of an insect that feeds off sea shells? Or what could be 
>causing this?
>Thanks for any info you can provide.
>
>Jerry Fahey
>Exhibits Designer
>The University Museum
>Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville
>Edwardsville, Illinois 62026 USA
>
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