Atlantic Strawberry Cockle
Americardia media
Also known as Strawberry Cockle
Markings and exact colorations may vary.
A squarish, heart-shaped cockle with strong flat ribs and reddish-brown chevron blotches.
- Typical size
- 1–2 in
- How often it turns up
- Uncommon
- Collecting
- Restricted
- Handling
- Safe to handle
Empty shells are fine to keep on most public beaches. Live shelling is banned in Lee County and Florida state parks and needs a fishing license elsewhere — if an animal is inside, put it back.
How to tell it apart
- Squarish heart shape with a sharply angled rear slope
- Strong, flat radial ribs
- White with reddish-brown blotches in chevron bands
Where to find these in Florida
Beaches rated very good or excellent for shells. Each page shows today’s score, the best window and access details.
- Anclote Key Preserve State Park · Tarpon Springs
- Bean Point · Anna Maria
- Beer Can Island (Greer Island) · Longboat Key
- Boca Grande Public Beach · Boca Grande
- Bowman's Beach · Sanibel
- Captiva Beach · Captiva
- Cayo Costa State Park · Cayo Costa
- Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park · Naples
- Don Pedro Island State Park · Cape Haze
- Dr. Julian G. Bruce St. George Island State Park · St. George Island
- Gasparilla Island State Park · Boca Grande
- Gulfside City Park (Algiers Beach) · Sanibel
Found one?
Photograph it and BeachNut ranks the likely matches with a confidence read, then logs it to your collection with the beach and date.
Browsing beaches and the full field guide is free. A free account logs unlimited finds and gives you three photo identifications a day.
Commonly confused with
Little Dove Strawberry CockleAmericardia columbella
Little dove is small and triangular with spots; Atlantic strawberry is larger and squarer with chevron bands.
More shells in the field guide
Get Florida beachcombing tips
Occasional emails: what's washing up, shelling tips and new BeachNut features. No spam, unsubscribe any time.