West Indian Chiton
Chiton tuberculatus
Markings and exact colorations may vary.
An armoured, oval mollusc built from eight overlapping plates, often found as loose single plates.
- Typical size
- 2–3 in whole; plates under an inch
- How often it turns up
- Whole animals rare in drift; plates common on rocky shores
- Collecting
- Usually legal to collect
- Handling
- Safe to handle
Loose plates and empty shells are fine. Never pry a living chiton off a rock — it usually kills the animal.
How to tell it apart
- Eight overlapping plates when whole
- Single plates look like small butterfly-shaped tiles
- Grey-green, mottled, with a leathery girdle when alive
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?
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