Shell Fragment Found Fitted With Strange Tag Sparks Internet Mystery

When Elisha Tess Blott found a mysterious shell fragment with a white and red tag, she did what many people do: went to social media for help. Specifically, she asked fellow members of the Snorkeling Western Australia Facebook group what they thought it was. She made the discovery at Mettams Pool in Australia, a lagoon north of Perth known for its snorkeling.

“DPIRD will take stock of Abalone and a couple years ago about 9000 were tagged, recorded and after a period of time released at reefs all along the WA coast,” a helpful Facebook user replied to her post. The DPIRD is the Government of Western Australia’s Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. Abalone are marine snails probably best known for their gorgeous mother-of-pearl shells.

“This is just a device to help the creature remember where it parked,” responded another user with a much more realistic theory. A brief investigation by Yahoo News revealed—shockingly—that the tag was not a parking spot reminder but indeed one of a group of roe abalone freed near Perth in 2023 and 2024.

Abalone info

The abalone fragment’s mother-of-pearl interior. © Elisha Tess Blott via Facebook

“The tag numbers are linked to records in our database that contain key information about each individual abalone. This includes the abalone’s date of birth, its length and age at the time it was tagged, and the date and location where it was released,” Jamin Brown, a research scientist at the DPIRD, told Yahoo News. Blott’s finding appeared to thrill him.

A total of 7,000 abalone were reared, numbered, and let go in a research program, according to the outlet. Each abalone’s number—5247, in the case of Blott’s—enables their growth and survival rates to be monitored. While the team is no longer tagging and releasing them, they will continue to track the group.

What to do if you find one

For those of you in the area, should you spot one of these tags, or tagged abalone, you should reach out to the DPIRD through this form with information regarding when and where it was discovered and a pic that includes a visible numbered tag and the shell close to a ruler, according to the researcher.

“The numbered tag is mounted on a stainless spring that was placed onto the growing edge of the abalone shell,” said Brown, according to the outlet. “After tagging, the abalone were left in our hatchery tanks for several months in order for the shell to grow over the spring and therefore securing the tag in place.”

A question for Brown—if Blott found just a shell fragment, I’m guessing that’s bad news for abalone 5247?