Before they were tokens from a successful beach trip, these shells were home to a native Great Lakes critter, the sharp hornsnail.
These bottom dwellers live in the mud and sand of Lake Erie, feeding on algae. When they die, their shells are pushed to shore, where beachgoers eagerly await to claim them as treasure.
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Beachgoers have to keep their eyes peeled to find these shells because these tiny critters can only grow to about an inch, says Hayley Rinearson, the education and outreach coordinator for Lake Erie Islands Nature and Wildlife Center.
“Their shells can vary from brown to grayish colors. And the swirls on them just depend on how old they are,” Rinearson says.
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