You have exhausted your free article views for this month. Please press the "subscribe" button below and see our introductory price of $0.10 per week for 10 weeks. Otherwise, we look forward to seeing you next month.

Please log in, or sign up for a new account to continue reading.

Thank you for reading! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content.

Thank you for reading the Tribune. If you would like to enjoy unlimited access, click the Subscribe button and select an offer. If you are already a subscriber, Register to activate your digital account.

Thank you for reading the Tribune. If you would like to enjoy unlimited access, click the Subscribe button and select an offer. If you are already a subscriber, Register to activate your digital account.

Many Caribbean people who have enjoyed conch fritters, a nice fresh conch salad or conch stew probably have not made the connection that this meat was harvested from a beautiful conch shell.

Conch shells come in a variety of colors and sizes, but the shape of the shells are usually the same. Once the meat is removed from the shell, it is used for jewelry or sold for its decorative beauty. The shell is also used as a musical instrument known as the seashell horn or shell trumpet.

If you have hear the sound coming from the shell, you would know that it sounds very much like a wind instrument. The seashell horn through the Caribbean region is blown during competitions such as track and field, soccer matches and even during victory parades.

The conch seashell horn is also used as a signal to send messages to rural communities. It often signals a fisherman’s return from the sea with a fresh catch. Upon hearing the unique sound, buyers head to the seaside to purchase fish, conch, lobster etc. You can’t get them any fresher.

Naomi, a family friend, returned to Jamaica for a family reunion in late July 2018. She said that everyday she would take advantage of the nearby beaches.

“I went to Prospect Beach with my sister and a few friends, a beach that I had frequented many times as a child. I stood on the white sand enjoying the view. The turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea were just as inviting as I remembered. As I was enjoying the warm trade-winds blowing across my face, a shout of joy interrupted my thoughts,” she recalled.

“As I watched others running quickly towards the shouter who was about 20 yards away, I realized that it was my sister. She held up a huge pink conch shell that she found lodged beneath the white sand,” she recalled.

Naomi said memories of seashell hunting on that very same beach when she was a 7-year-old child came flooding back.

“I got a lot of pleasure in watching the excitement that finding the conch shell brought to my sister,” she said. “I finally got a glance of the pink and tan colored shell as it glistened in the sun; it was huge.

“We used to have a lot of pink conch shells around the house. They were used as bookends, planters on a shelf or just as a show piece on the windowsill. Conch shells were also used to decorate some neighbor’s verandahs (porches) and even their flower beds,” she said.

Most people who eat the conch meat really don’t think about the sea creature beyond the dining table. What is a conch? How does a conch move around in such a heavy-looking shell? Does the conch ever come out of its shell? What does a conch eat?

Here are some of the answers to those questions.

Conchs are mollusks — much like clams or oysters — that appeared about 50 million years ago. They live in tropical waters around the world. They are sea snails that use shell to build elaborate homes and use as protection from predators. Conchs very rarely leave their shells. As herbivores, they eat plants, mostly sea grass, algae and plankton. They are eaten by loggerhead turtles, horse conchs and humans.

Most of the Caribbean islands have their own recipes for conch.

A queen conch grows up about a foot long and lives up to 30 years. Other species can live a little over 40 years. Adult conchs move around in a space equivalent to about 15 acres. Rather than swimming, they use their legs and have to throw their bodies forward due to the weight of their shell. Conchs are also climbers. In the summer time, they move around often within the 15 acres during reproductive season when the males search for mates and females look for safe places to lay their eggs.

The conch is more than just a delicacy in the Caribbean. According to Wikipedia, in the Bahamas, “broken or up-turned conch shells are imbedded into the tops of outdoor walls in an effort to maintain home security; these shells are sharp enough to cut any intruder who attempts to jump or crawl over the wall.”

If you are ever walking along a beach in the islands and you stumble across a conch shell, call it good fortune and pick it up. Don’t worry, you are not depriving the animal of a home. The conch is not walking around looking for its missing home. More than likely, it died or got eaten by another sea predator.

The shell makes for a great decorative piece. Pick it up, take it home and every now and then take a look at it, put it to your ear and listen to the sound as it brings back memories of the beautiful beaches of the Caribbean.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are his. View more opinions on phillytrib.com.

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

At the Free Library of Philadelphia, Brian Westbrook and Lesley Van Arsdall read "The Mouse Who Played Football." The children's book parallels Westbrook's life and the doubt from others that surrounded his NFL career. During the Q&A, Westbrook reminded the audience to always believe in …

We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

Obituaries and death notices are paid. The editorial department may decide to cover someone's passing.

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos.

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.