Seashell promised reward to finder. It washed up on SC beach after floating 38 years

Turbulent currents off the Carolinas are credited with driving wondrous shells to shore, but a South Carolina man says he recently found a true oddity near Charleston: A tagged seashell promising a reward for the finder.

It was a knobbed whelk and Michael Kapusta of Simpsonville says it turned up at Folly Beach, 12 miles south of Charleston, according to the S.C. Department of Natural Resources.

The word “reward” is clearly visible on the tag, but the rest is a cryptic: “Mtn. shell, date, location, S.C. Mar. Res. Chas., S.C. 29412.”

Understandably baffled, Kapusta called the Department of Natural Resources, which reports it began an investigation that found the well-preserved shell has been tumbling on the ocean floor for decades.

“A little detective work revealed that the shell has been sporting its tag for 38 years almost to the day,” the department posted on Facebook.

“It was one of 7,000 adult whelks released by SCDNR biologists in October 1982 as part of a study to learn more about how whelks migrate and how long they live. The majority of the tagged whelks that were recaptured within two years were caught and reported by shrimpers (74%) and had traveled an average of three miles.”

One shell traveled at least nine miles from the release point, officials said. However, the one Kapusta found was an underachiever: “It was both released and found at Folly Beach,” the state posted.

As for the reward, it was $25, the state learned.

The fate of Kapusta’s shell was not revealed. However, knobbed whelks are highly collectible and can grow to 9 inches, the state says.

“Whelks can live over a decade, so this shell has been empty for quite some time,” the state wrote. “What we’d really like to know is what brand of epoxy our biologists used that stood up underwater for almost four decades.”

This story was originally published November 4, 2020 at 10:37 AM with the headline "Seashell promised reward to finder. It washed up on SC beach after floating 38 years."