The Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium is introducing new programs and opportunities in the visitor experience, field education, and community science for the 2026 season.

 

Third Thursdays is a new, special evening-hours experience of the Museum during the 2026 season, held on the third Thursday evening of each month, January through April. From 5pm to 7:30pm on January 22, February 19, March 19, and April 16, visitors will enjoy access to all exhibits and galleries, live music in the Great Hall of Shells, a Keeper Chat led by aquarists in the Living Gallery of Aquariums, a gallery talk in the new exhibits of the Great Hall of Shells, and craft activities that are both kid- and adult-friendly.

 

Third Thursdays also includes a bar and light bites, and the Museum Store will be open for shopping. Admission is $10 adults, $5 children (ages 5-17), and is free for Museum Members and children under the age of 5. Pre-registration is not required.

 

Also this season, the Museum is offering new field education opportunities to get outside with Museum educators and learn, engage, and participate through explorations of the beauty of Southwest Florida’s natural environments.

 

Sunrise Shell and Mollusk Strolls will be held at Lighthouse Beach on Sanibel on January 18, February 3, and March 2. Participants join a Museum marine biologist for an early-morning, low-tide beach stroll to learn about local mollusks and their shells, enjoy good shelling conditions, and gain a closer understanding of molluscan biology and biodiversity. Cost is $10/adult, $5/Museum Member adult/$5 child (17 and under). Parking not included. Pre-registration is required and available at ShellMuseum.org.

 

Shelling and Beach Walks will be held at Sundial Beach Resort & Spa on Sanibel at 9am on January 11, February 1. March 1, and April 12. Museum marine biologists and educators lead guided walks along Sanibel’s shores at Sundial Resort in search of shells and other forms of local marine life. Participants learn about some of the island’s most beloved and rare shells, the mollusks that grow them, and how they fit into local beach ecosystems. Cost is $15/adult, $5 Museum Member adult/$5 child (17 and under).

 

Capacity for Sunrise Shell and Mollusk Strolls and Shelling and Beach Walks is limited. Pre-registration is required at ShellMuseum.org/learn-and-experience/field-education.

 

Museum-organized community science projects invite the public to participate in observations, research, and data-collecting in nature to help document meaningful scientific information about local mollusks. No prior background in science is necessary, and there is no cost to participate.

 

Live Mollusk Counts will be held on March 1 at 6am and May 14 at 6pm. The community is invited to walk Sanibel’s beaches at some of the lowest tides of the year to observe and document sightings of living mollusks. Data collected is used to benchmark local mollusk populations. There is no cost to participate, but pre-registration is required. For more information and to register please email [email protected].

 

The community is also invited to participate in Snail Search of Lee County. Marine mollusks and their shells are well known in Southwest Florida, but people often overlook terrestrial mollusks such as land and tree snails, and slugs. These animals play important roles in the region’s ecosystem and food web and have beautiful shells of their own. Our understanding of the diversity and abundance of land snail species in Southwest Florida is very limited. The goal of Snail Search of Lee County is to record observations of land snails for baseline information. Learn more at ShellMuseum.org/learn-and-experience/community-science.

 

Visit ShellMuseum.org to learn more about all in person and online educational programs.

 

About the Museum: The Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium is a natural history museum and aquarium, and the only museum in the United States devoted primarily to shells and mollusks. Its mission is to educate and inspire an understanding of mollusks, their shells, and their habitats using exceptional experiences, collections, and science. Permanent exhibitions on view include the Great Hall of Shells which displays highlights of the Museum’s collection of more than 600,000 shells, as well as the Living Gallery of Aquariums and over 60 species of marine life. For more information, please visit ShellMuseum.org or call (239) 395-2233.