Trading new for very old

By Amy Bentley

This year I joined the North Carolina fossilized sea biscuit craze through social media and the postal service. I’m now the proud owner of a dozen fossilized sea biscuits as well as a collection of large, beautiful North Carolina whelks in amazing colors. My foray into collecting the North Carolina whelks and sea biscuit fossils started over the summer when I joined two Facebook groups called Carolina Seashellers and Shell Traders United.

Having never been to North or South Carolina, I was not familiar with any of their best shelling spots. I live near the beach in Southwest Florida, a region well-known for its abundant and beautiful variety of local shells. I’ve shelled at many locations here including in the Ten Thousand Islands and Sanibel Island, and have a nice collection of high-quality local seashells. They include lace and apple murex, alphabet cones, Florida fighting conchs, moon snails, lightning whelks, and banded tulips in a rainbow of colors.

Left: Some of the Southwest Florida seashells Amy traded with Carolyn. Right: Fossil sea biscuit from Holden Beach, North Carolina.

I enjoy beachcombing around my area weekly and wasn’t really looking to expand my shell collection—until I joined Carolina Seashellers. I quickly learned about the beaches and coastal islands in the Carolinas and the shells commonly found there. I read about people from all over the country seeking to collect, buy, or trade for fossilized sea biscuits found only at Holden Beach, North Carolina. A spring 2022 dredging effort there disturbed a bed of fossilized sea urchins offshore, and these sea biscuit fossils, which are 66–70 million years old, began washing up in large numbers at Holden Beach. Beachcombers have been going there in droves to collect these fossils before they’re all snatched up.

Today, unbroken sea biscuit fossils can still be found on shore at Holden Beach on some days, but locals say their numbers are dwindling and it’s getting harder to find them. Visitors now sometimes have to hunt for them or look in the water. On some days, you can’t find any. It’s just a matter of time until they are gone.

Some of the seashells and seashell art Amy traded with Carolyn.

As luck would have it, a nice seashell enthusiast in North Carolina named Carolyn became my virtual shell collecting buddy. She visits remote islands and beaches in North Carolina often and has collected many sea biscuit fossils. Like her, local residents on social media have offered to send fellow shellers some of their sea biscuit fossils either as a gift or as a trade for seashells.

Left: Calico whelk from North Carolina. Right: Large colorful whelks from North Carolina.

Through online messages, Carolyn and I have arranged to trade shells by mail several times. In exchange for a variety of local Southwest Florida shells, I now have a dozen sea biscuit fossils and some gorgeous, large South Carolina whelks. Whelks are my favorite shell, and the shells from North Carolina are incredible, especially the marbled black, gray, and white whelks that Carolyn calls “calico” shells. Others are a dark gray or multi-colored, likely from years of sitting in sediment underwater.

Left: Black whelk from North Carolina. Right: Channel whelk from North Carolina.

Shell trading has been a fun and rewarding experience. Carolyn has been generous with her shells and fossils, and I’ve enjoyed becoming a part of the Holden Beach sea biscuit fossil craze. I’m planning a trip to North Carolina and can’t wait to explore the beautiful places I’ve seen online—and hunt for my own sea biscuit fossils and colorful, large whelks.

All photos by Amy Bentley.

Learn more about seashells

Learn more about identifying shells, the history of seashell collecting, great shelling beaches, and the lives of the animals who make the shells we find on the beach. Articles ›

No live shelling: Be sure shells are empty and sand dollars, sea stars, and sea urchins are no longer alive before you bring them home.