Notched Sand Dollar
Mellita quinquiesperforata
Markings and exact colorations may vary.
The classic five-holed Florida sand dollar, flat and pale with a neat petal flower on top.
- Typical size
- 2–4 in
- How often it turns up
- Common
- Collecting
- Restricted
- Handling
- May be alive
If it is brown, fuzzy, or moving, it is alive — put it back in the water. Only white, bleached, empty tests should be collected, and some parks prohibit even that.
How to tell it apart
- Five elongated slots (lunules) through the test
- Five-petal pattern on the upper face
- Flat, thin, chalky white when bleached
Where to find these in Florida
Beaches rated very good or excellent for sand dollars. Each page shows today’s score, the best window and access details.
- Anclote Key Preserve State Park · Tarpon Springs
- Beer Can Island (Greer Island) · Longboat Key
- Boca Grande Public Beach · Boca Grande
- Cayo Costa State Park · Cayo Costa
- Dr. Julian G. Bruce St. George Island State Park · St. George Island
- Fort De Soto North Beach · Tierra Verde
- Keewaydin Island · Naples
- North Captiva Island Beach · North Captiva
- T.H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park · Port St. Joe
- Tarpon Bay Road Beach · Sanibel
- Tigertail Beach · Marco Island
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.
More sand dollars 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.