Seashells of Okinawa by Shawn Miller

The beautiful seashells of the Ryukyu Islands.

It all started in 1989,  I went to a friend’s house and saw some beautiful seashells displayed on a counter-top.  My first thought was that they were fake or man-made. The intricate design of the Venus Comb Murex shell caught my eye.  I was fascinated by the design and wanted to learn more about the animal that produced this beautiful shell.

Murex spicatus -Venus comb murex

Murex spicatus -Venus comb murex© Shawn Miller

I continued to collect,  photograph and read more about marine mollusks from the Ryukyu Islands. I eventually started contributing my collection samples to worldwide museums, scientists, specialists and images for various scientific publications. I currently do not collect shells anymore but enjoy photographing the marine snails in their natural habitat.

General rules to shell collecting

  • Be respectful of the environment.
  • Only collect dead specimens
  • Avoid over collecting sea-shells
  • If you turn over rocks, place them back in the original position
  • Return all unwanted shells back to the coastline

Below are some of my favorite shells found on Okinawa.

Semipallium dianae - scallop

Semipallium dianae © Shawn Miller

Neocancilla takiisaoi

Neocancilla takiisaoi © Shawn Miller

Cardium victor - Heart shell

Cardium victor – Heart shell © Shawn Miller

Lambis scorpius - scorpion conch

Lambis scorpius – scorpion conch © Shawn Miller

Morum ponderosum

Morum ponderosum © Shawn Miller

Annachlamys reevei

Annachlamys reevei © Shawn Miller

Chicoreus ryukyuensis

Chicoreus ryukyuensis © Shawn Miller

Cypraea (Blasicrura) luchuana (Kuroda,1960) Okinawa

Cypraea (Blasicrura) luchuana  © Shawn Miller

Gloripallium speciosum

Gloripallium speciosum – sunray scallop © Shawn Miller

Avoid handling the venomous cone shells.  They are often found reef walking during low tide.

Venomous cones shells of Okinawa

Venomous cones shells of Okinawa © Shawn Miller

The trident trumpet is sought after for its beauty. This marine snail is one of the few natural predators of the crown of thorn starfish. This large snail also feeds on a variety of starfish as well.

Trident trumpet © Shawn Miller

Trident trumpet © Shawn Miller

Sinezona milleri (Geiger & Sasaki, 2009) – Named for the collector of the type specimens, Shawn Miller of Nagahama, Okinawa, for his continued support in malacological research by providing marine sediment samples of Okinawa.

Sinezona milleri (Geiger & Sasaki , 2009)

Sinezona milleri (Geiger & Sasaki , 2009)

Hemilienardia shawnmilleri.  A new species named after naturalist and underwater photographer Shawn Miller. Described by Shawn Wiedrick.

Hemilienardia shawnmilleri

Hemilienardia shawnmilleri

Calliostoma shawni (Poppe & Tagarao, 2020). A new species from Okinawa named after naturalist and underwater photographer Shawn Miller

Calliostoma shawni (Poppe & Tagarao, 2020)

Calliostoma shawni (Poppe & Tagarao, 2020)

This Giant helmet shell (Cassis cornuta) conformed around the rubber gasket (Marine debris).  An interesting photograph, but our trash is becoming a serious problem.

Helmet shell and rubber gasket

Helmet shell and rubber gasket © Shawn Miller

My daughter and I found this mutated strawberry conch shell in 2018. This is the first four-eyed conch shell I have seen. They naturally have two eyes, not four.

Strawberry conch

Mutated four-eyed conch © Shawn Miller

 My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

This site is also designed to help people identify the beautiful animals of Okinawa, basically to serve as an online nature reference guide. If you would like to make a contribution to support my mission, please click on the donation link  paypal.me/maketheswitch4nature

Your donations will help conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines.  Thank you for your support, Shawn M Miller.

#MakeTheSwitch4Nature

Know your nature with Shawn Miller. Have a great day!

Nature therapy- Chasing waterfalls on Iriomote Island

This was my fist time exploring Iriomote Island and I have to say it was an outstanding experience.  We were fortunate to have great weather with sunny days. The waterfalls were flowing with clear pristine water.  The twelve hour hike with an experienced guide and four good friends (Pete Leong, Mark Thorpe, Vish Lazcano and Nayuta Hirana) paid off.

The mission was to get some nature therapy and photograph three Impressive waterfalls. I spent most of my time just enjoying the moment and taking documentation photographs with my GoPro Hero 4 Silver.

This was our first view of Maryudo falls in the distance.

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Mariyudo falls, Iriomote

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Mariyudo falls, Iriomote Island

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Mariyudo no-taki, Iriomote Island

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Shooting Mariyudo falls, Iriomote Island

Mariyudo falls is a popular swimming area.  Watch out for leeches!

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Shooting Mariyudo falls, Iriomote Island

On to the next waterfall, Kanpire waterfall is only a ten minute walk from Mariyudo.

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Kanpire waterfall -Iriomote

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Kanpire waterfall -Iriomote

The two hour hike begins! time to find the most amazing waterfall known as Mayagusuku falls.

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Freshwater pools -Iriomote

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River trekking – Iriomote Island

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River trekking – almost there!

We finally made it to Mayagusuku falls! It was worth the hike!

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Mayagusuku falls -Iriomote Island

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Mayagusuku falls -Iriomote Island

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Mayagusuku falls -Iriomote Island

The climb to the top was the most impressive part of my trip ! The falls reminded me of a scene cut from Jurassic park.

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Mayagusuku falls -Iriomote Island

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Mayagusuku falls -Iriomote Island

I really didn’t want to leave this waterfall but we had get back before nightfall.

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The beauty of Iriomote Island

Twelve hours later…  we made it back safe!