A Different High – Martin Daly and Shell Collecting
Most surfers would probably be familiar with the Martin Daly story: Salvage diver, explorer, Indo pioneer, architect of the Quiksilver Crossing, posting up in the Marshalls, etc.
With COVID, Martin’s been locked out of Oz for over a year now, which is a hell of a long time away from his loved ones in Perth: wife Lee, and kids Alexandra, 22, and Walker, 20.
Between some patience-testing stints stuck in various South Pacific ports, Martin’s been finding consolation at anchor alongside numerous empty breaks – in essence identical to his younger self some forty years ago.
Martin spoke with us whilst motoring to a mooring after a fine day of waves.
Martin Daly, 63. Been shell collecting for 50 years
I first got into shell collecting as a kid when my parents moved up to Townsville in North Queensland.
I was about 13 or 14, and there was no surf up there, obviously, so I started diving and got a job as a deckhand on a charter boat called the Sea Cock, captained by a bloke called Cocky Watson. We did spearfishing and diving trips out to the Barrier Reef, and we’d take the Townsville Shell Club out as well.
The Townsville Shell Club was mostly made up of all these old ladies – they’d come out on the boat, walk across the reef at a super low tide, and my job was to help the old ducks turn over rocks and so on, and they were keen to ‘use my sharp young eyes’.
I started to get familiar with what they were looking for, and started to learn the Latin names of the shells, what was rare, what was common, etc. They were very passionate about it, and it rubbed off on me.
It got to the point where I’d wag school every month when the tides were really low, head out with my mate Tony Ragget, and look for shells.
So I ended up with a pretty incredible shell collection – I’ve been reliably informed it’s comparable to the Auckland Museum’s – which I kept at my parents’ place for safekeeping. My dad passed away last year, and my mum’s in a nursing home – it’s actually a pretty sad situation. There’s a guy who befriended my mother, and he’s managed to get her to sign over the family home to him. He’s discovered my shell collection in the attic and doesn’t plan to relinquish it. It’s pretty messed up, unfinished business I’ve got to take care of when I’m allowed back into Australia.
Shells have always captivated me. It’s almost like they make you believe in a higher power or something, because they’re just so incredibly beautiful… and you just go, “Why? What’s the point?” I mean some shells live face down in mud their whole lives, they’re covered in seaweed, you turn them over and they are just the most amazing things, the most colourful and incredible designs you’ve ever seen. If that doesn’t fill you with wonder, what will?
Shells are made of calcium carbonate, secreted as bone material by the animal, which starts off without a shell. It secretes it and keeps on secreting it, usually in a circular or spiral form, apart from bivalves like oysters and stuff.
Shell X-Rays from a sneaky Tweed Hospital mission (Gra Murdoch)
Some people get upset about shell collecting. I posted a photo on Instagram of some of my shells and copped some shit about ‘taking coral and shells’ – and I replied, "Well I agree about the coral part", so I don’t take any, but as far as the shells are concerned, particularly if they’re dead, they’re just gonna be sand sooner or later.
Shells, particularly rare ones, used to be a valuable commodity, but their cash value isn’t what it used to be, and for me it’s never been about the cash anyway.
Here’s a story that illustrates how prized some shells used to be: This fella named Wally Gibbins, an Aussie salvage diver, was in the Solomon islands in the early ‘70s and there was this really rare shell called the 'Glory Of The Sea' cone shell, Conus Gloriamaris, and at this stage I think there had only ever been a handful found, and they were worth over a thousand dollars each, which doesn’t sound like much now, but in those days you could buy a decent house for $8,000, so that puts it in perspective.
So, using his knowledge of the Gloriamaris’s diet, Wally honed in on their habitat on the backside of Guadalcanal, and Wally and his two mates found 300 of them! He put an ad in a shell magazine and said ‘I have a single Gloriamaris for sale’… and by the time the world figured it out – because there was no Internet in those days – he and his mates sold most of them, and made an absolute fortune.
Coupla recent ones (Martin Daly)
Nowadays, really rare shells – shells that you would never find as long as you live – you can probably buy now for like five or six-hundred bucks.
Like, I’ve never found a Golden Cowrie, Cypraea aurantium, or a great Spotted Cowrie Cypraea Guttata, or a Gloriamaris Coneshell.
It’d cost me ten times what they’re worth in diesel and time just to find them, but to find them would be a lifetime achievement of sorts.
That’s the difference: If you buy a shell, they’re just ornaments, but if you find ‘em, there’s a whole story, a whole narrative tied to ‘em, a memory associated with that moment.
When I was travelling around on the Quiksilver Crossing going to all these different parts of the world, I’d always find a shell to bring home and give to my daughter. She’d have ‘em lined up along the back of her bed, and she knew the story of each one, where it was from, etcetera. And that was kind of a big deal for me. It was a way that we were connected. Not just for her to be reminded of me, but whenever I was out there, looking for a shell for her, she’d kind of be out there with me as well.
I’ll be turning 64 shortly, and when I come across a shell – whether diving or beachcombing or coming out of the water after a surf – it still takes me back to that feeling of being a kid again.
Come to think of it, I’ve kind of come full circle, I’m getting fired up again! I was actually stuck in a harbour recently and was diving in the harbour and found three species I’ve never found before my whole life – just sloshing around under the boat. Commercially they’re worth nothing but for me, personally, it was very satisfying.
As far as tips for young players go: There’s a couple of shells you should avoid. A live Cone Shell can kill you. It’s got this dart that comes out with a very strong venom. You pick them up by the crown and you’re alright, but don’t put them in your pocket or anything. It’s always better to find dead ones anyway.
And no matter what shell, if you’re taking live shells – if you’re comfortable with that – only take two. Once you’ve got a pair, that’s it, you’re done. And alive or dead, why diminish the environment by taking more than what you need?
If you’re on a surf trip overseas (yes, it will happen again)… and you’re collecting shells generally you’re okay to bring ’em back in through customs – as long as there’s no critters inside – all except for the Triton shell Charonia tritonis. This is a CITES* protected species ‘cos it’s the only known predator of the Crown of Thorns Starfish.
Corals on the other hand, that’s a no. Leave the coral.
Actually, there’s another shell you can’t take – the giant clamshell.
I had a couple from Malibu out in The Marshalls a few years back, the fella’s passed away now. They were going mad on collecting the shells. I wasn’t stoked but didn’t want to cause an issue about it. They packed a few boxes of shells up and sent them to California. Unbeknownst to me, they listed me as the ‘owner’ of the shells.
And – you can probably guess where this is going – they had some protected clam shells in the box. As a result, every time I went through customs into the United States for the next five years, I’d get a 'Secondary Inspection', because there was a fish and wildlife warrant out for me for those clams.
No good deed goes unpunished hey. Bloody clams, always get you into trouble.
(Note, your interviewer interjects here with “especially bearded clams”’, which was met with a polite chuckle, and at which point it seemed a good spot to wrap up the conversation.)
*CITES: (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.)
// MARTIN DALY (as shared with GRA MURDOCH)
Opening photo Ted Grambeau
Comments
Seems harmless enough
Intriguing subject the shell collecting .
Golden rule : Don’t destroy what you came to enjoy.
I've a always wanted a taste of the purple oyster.
That, sprinkled with a little brown sugar.
Is there anyone lower than a person who exploits an elderly person of feeble mind for their own financial gain?
sure is Blowin, I'm a fan and once a partaker. Got a decent cowrie collection. In the area I regularly scoped, I quickly learnt the early bird gets the worm. I would only ever find anything decent if I was the first on the beach. Got a full intact razor clam once, still in good condition.
and this reminds me of the elusive Kahelelani shells. I met some cool vey committed collectors of those on my one trip to the garden Isle. What a lifestyle I thought.
Just last night I was going through my shell collection wishing I had brought more home from trips.
Never take live ones. Customs / biosecurity don't like to see too many or "fresh ones". Wave worn are clean and pose no threat or do any harm. Often the broken ones are more interesting cause you see the whorls inside and are clearly old and clean.
Tiny ones look great up close. There are countless little miniatures of their grown up selves that never made it to adulthood that you can fit in a small jar to admire. Transport and storage is no issue at that size.
Smooth wave worn pebbles and shells have always been my main souvenir. Glacier and ocean worn marble pebbles from Spain, Italy etc. Shells from Indo. All free and found by me.
Ive found you can bring back ones that are still in very good condition(obviously not live), you just need to make sure they are really well washed out with fresh water, even if they have sand in them still they might not let you bring them into Aust.
And off course always declare them.
Only other issue is there is ones that are on cites list and illegal to have as endangered so if anything less common they may have to check, i think you can get fines if have ones on cites list.
I was just thinking the same thing, Zen. Surely there are laws that protect the elderly from this despicable, predatory behaviour. I hope things work out for you, Martin.
Truly disgusting isn't it.
When I was ten mum took us to fiji, Where we found hermit crabs galore. So I brought a couple home in my pocket. As you do. Flushed them down the toilet and that was that...
About 3 months ago I was surfing my favourite bank in sydney and found it was full of hermit crabs....
Didnt know sydney had hermit crabs???
My grandmother and mother etc lived in Fiji for years and they collected all these exotic shells (had all the ones above pic) and had countless types of different Cowries some quite rare, they had a special shell cabinet hand built in Fiji that had about 30 draws full, i always loved it as a kid when visiting gran and we always went beach combing with her and gem stone collecting and gold detecting, even here in Aust she was in shell clubs and gemstone clubs etc
Last year actually my Auntie who now has the collection and cabinet offered it too me, i instantly said yes, but then thought where am i going to put it and will i ever really look at it, and kind of thought maybe its better to move on.
I wanted it to go to a shell museum but i think one of my cousins might have taken it.
I did get some paper nautilus we had collected locally though from the collection, and i still have some nice shells from Indo.
Great read. So much good info, and I know exactly what he is talking about in relation to picking shells for (with) my daughter.
I've always been fascinated by them and somehow found comfort in having them close by. A connection to the ocean I guess.
My boy and i have beachcombed together all throughout his childhood, finding all sorts of flotsam ,shells, wave buoys, collected tons of rubbish etc. The memories of these days are priceless, some advice to young dads out there , this is an incredible way to bond with your children, teach them about our enviroment, how to drive a tinny and as Martin said the story behind the discovery is forever there in your lives.
couldnt agree more. thats what i am most appreciative of growing up
Great yarn! My mother had a similar addiction to shell collecting during our family's travels across the Pacific Ocean.
When I was a kid of 14, I found a rare Bubble Shell (Hydatina Amplustre) in a tide pool on the island of Tahuata in the Marquesas. We still have it on display in the family home in NZ, it's a beautiful tiny object with paper thin construction and a very uncommon pure white, black and pink colouring without any discolouration. I also have a very small complete and untarnished Triton shell that I found empty on a night dive in Tonga, measuring only 30mm in length. I showed it to the dive master upon boarding the boat and he told me about it's CITES status, to which I asked if he thought I should throw it back into the sea. He immediately replied in his thick Italian accent that if I did that he would be jumping overboard to collect it for himself and he convinced me to keep it. He said it was extremely hard to find so small and empty without any holes bored into it by predators. It lives on the shelf next to the bubble shell and they are two of my mother's favourite things.
Shells are such a fine example of natural design.
Still find it impossible to walk past a cowrie or nautilus without bringing it home. Cool story and stories above.
Uncle had at one time the largest cowrie collection in the S Hemi, he is incredibly knowledgeable too. So yes, I have held the Golden Cowrie in my hands
*Legend of Zelda achievement sound*
I remember scouring over the wave cut platform at Alex Hedland as a kid with him, and being able to find a couple of the little cowries, great experience.
My folks bought a nice shell collection for my seven year old boy for Xmas, to kickstart things. They came with lovely personalised descriptions from the collector. My fella’s so stoked with them.
That's a lovely looking murex! And what a cool gift. Things that fascinate are so underrated.
My daughter has started collecting shells over the last year and last night I picked some of my better Indo ones and gave them to her. Compared to her Aussie ones they were pretty special and she knew it.
After a surf i now do a quick scan to add to her collection. A nice shared interest that is simple and connected to ocean explorations.
Good onya Martin and thanks Gra for a nice, clean, wholesome story.
Love the line in the article: "It's almost like they make you believe in a higher power or something".
John 8:32 NKJV...."And you shall know the Truth and the Truth shall make you free".
God bless you both and the surf craft you rode in on.
Anyone remember Van from Vans place in J-Bay? That old Lech had an excellent shell collection picked up from around the area
I absolutely love looking for shells, not the best quality on the Sunshine Coast, but lots of fun anyway. I have started selling beautiful abundant shells at the markets, the quality of shells I receive is stunning, very hard to part with. I have all the shells in your pictures, lambis, strombus, green turbo, pica turbo, cowries but my favourite by far is still the red helmet, such a stunning shell
Great story with strong message re avoiding the taking of live animals. Just one pedantic point - the Giant Triton is not the only known predator of the coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish. Although important, there are plenty of others, across different life stages of the starfish. Speaking of tritons, early advocate for their protection Bob Endean (long gone now) claimed that tea chests of them (live ones) were taken from different areas of the Great Barrier Reef, and presumably elsewhere, more than a century ago, as even then they were a valuable commodity. And well before that, Polynesians used them in ceremonies, but seem highly unlikely to have decimated the populations.
even bearded clams are becoming harder to come by these days
Good story , have collected shells since i was 4 or 5 , just part of growing up around the ocean and ive always loved the treasures washed up from the sea . I like beachcombing exotic coastlines when the surf is flat or onshore or after big swells , it gives me something to do and you never know what you will find . Not a big fan of whats happened in the Philippines or indo where the shells have been mass collected to make wall hangings , lamp shades , nick naks etc. but as Martin says to collect a few here and there is ok . Like Martin said most shells dont fetch the kind of money they used to and a once popular hobby is kind of frowned upon these days but some shells are still worth a bomb like the beautiful Zoila cowries from WA some of which fetch tens of thousands of $
Great story and i too love collecting shells and probably the first one i did find was in the bay behind Lizard Island where our trawler come dive boat was anchored...this is in 1969 long before a resort was built there.We had been out spearing at a little atoll east of Lizard Island early that morning and had cleaned our catch with the frames thrown over the side of the boat.I decided that a nice little swim around the boat was in order as it is such a picturesque spot, so not long into the dive i came a cross a trumpet shell which was still alive unfortunately so swimming back to the boat a strange feeling came over me as i felt i wasnt alone.Sure enough approaching the boat i noticed that a lot of the frames had gone and as some of the boys were doing bombs off the boat so i thought i would wait and see what was eating them thinking reef sharks.....well a large shadow swam under the boat and noticed me hanging on the surface and decided he was going to check me out all 14ft of him.First Tiger shark i had seen and here he was swimming along the bottom in my direction .....well i decided then and there that flght wasn't going to cut it and all i had in my hands was a trumpet shell which i was going to use to defend myself with.......funny how you go into survival mode when you have too.....so lucky for me he swam up to my flippers and rolled over on his back and went back down to the sand and back to the boat.Probably the fastest 40 meters i have swum as i was the grommet on the boat the boys didnt believe the story at first until he swam back under the boat and freaked everyone out.......shell collecting with a twist...still have the shell and after reading this article looked online and am surprised by how much it could be worth...
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/202608607540?chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=...
I remember as a lil tacker, I dunno, maybe six or seven something, on the beach down at Aireys Inlet in winter, and as the youngest, (and least able to concentrate) kid in the mixed tribe of the two families that were there (the Murdochs and the Thoms)... always being jealous of anyone who found a cowrie. I mean, the other shells were cool, the Painted Ladies and the Abalone shells with their mother of pearl colouring, but Cowries were precious treasure, and buggered if I could ever find one...
And then, this arvo, pretty much given up and resigned to a pocketful of B grade specimens, I turned and there ON A ROCK, RIGHT NEXT TO ME, was a beautiful cowrie! Like, WHAT WERE THE ODDS?! I remember Dad, (a loving but pretty stern kind of bloke – a kind of sternness I now see clearly in myself) was right next to me at the time, and far out I was stoked! And I remember him being stoked at how happy I was. A miracle that this cowrie was up on this rock. I can remember it all in a few vivid mental screen shots, almost fifty years on.
It wasn't until, shit, decades later, when that welcome memory paid one of its semi-regular visits to me that I realised Dad had, of course, placed that Cowrie there for me to find. Fuck I miss my Dad.
I love this storey ,
I try to do things like this for my young fella .
On a different note I found some nice cowries when working off the swains reef in the late 80,s and gave then away or swapped them for next to nothing .
But also I found a very rare shell diving off the coast between Carnarvon and Exmouth that my friend who is a licensed shell diver sold for $15,000
This is my better halfs idea of shell collecting taken to a new level. Suffice to say she was pretty chuffed for a first time effort.
I'd be chuffed too Gary, those look really cool.
Nice story above Gra, brings a tear to my eye.
I really miss my dad too.
garyg...great stuff!
Love this forum great stories by top quality fellas
My lady is a hardcore beachcomber. We’ve got boxes of the things aside from those decorating the house everywhere you look. There’s shells amongst her collection which are her equivalent of 10 foot barrels she’s that blissed out after stumbling over them in some exotic location.
I found a paper nautilus in perfect nick on a beach in K.I. last sept. I believe they are made by a certain octopus. Added it to my collection.
Gra, any interesting story attached to your shell X-ray pics?
Yeah nothing mindblowing Solitude, but always loved X-Rays. I remember getting a referral off a sympathetic doctor for 'a sore wrist' so I could muck around with shadow puppet shape x rays with my hands. (the dog came up unreal). My dentist let me X-Ray a coupla shells, but their Xray is pretty small, so a mate of mine from Burleigh, Paul, was an orderly at Tweed hospital and he set up a time with a radiologist surfer friend, (an absolute babe as I recall) during a quiet time for X-Rays. took the shells in and did as many X-Rays of as many shells as we could in about 15 minutes. It was all a bit rushed and I was paranoid about the crew getting trouble, but it was fun and we got some nice images, and it felt a bit naughty as well. Ran 'em in an early issue of White Horses mag, so, shit, must have been 2012 or thereabouts, FARK! ALMOST A DECADE AGO!
There you go eh. Pics are interesting.
Thanks for sharing your cowrie story.
I’ve got a cool x ray piccie lying around somewhere, good size Raider treble hanging out of my knee cap after a tailor fish before work went wrong!
Nice interview Gra, who doesn’t love a nice cowrie shell!
Hey Martin- Wally Gibbins was my dad's apprentice (spearfisherman)- my dad being a pioneer & first to win a spearfishing title in Aus. Wal was also a very close family friend who I called Uncle Wal. He became quite obsessed with all manner of diving but spent a lot of time salvage diving in the Solomons. He did pretty much the same thing with the Golden Cowrie. Had boxes of them and slowly eked them out to maintain their value as a rarity. Gotta love the old Aussie ingenuity.
G'day compact wing. Hey I'm working on some gear about Martin / Wally, and am curious about your old boy. What was his name, if I could ask? Cheers!
Hey Gra, Jack Egan. I've just recently put a post up about some of his exploits on the Surfing Sydney’s Northern Beaches in the 60’s & 70’s Facebook page .. Cheers. https://www.facebook.com/groups/Northernbeachesinthe60s/?multi_permalink...
Just started reading the Tom/Nick Carroll book, literally reading about Martin Daly!
I've really enjoyed reading the posts about shell collecting, something I have done on all my travels, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, England, Spain, Portugal, France, Japan, Holland and here in Australia. A few years ago I had the opportunity to visit Masig Island (Yorke) in the Torres Straits, truly my most exciting shell collecting experience.
I recall finding one of the gorgeous black cowries mentioned above, so glossy and perfect after a surf at Tea Tree. I looked around before picking it up thinking someone must be playing a trick. It's such a lovely thing to share with the kids, seeing their eyes light up when they've found one just for you.
Yeah been collecting shells that I come across whilst surfing. Incredible the joy & memories they can induce.My last GR8 find was a large Nautilus I found before a surf @ one of my locals, I am still amazed @ how unique & intricate the construction of it is. The Fibonacci spiral sequence used in its construction makes you realize that our connection with a greater force is in no doubt in our Universe.
I remember seeing the locals at Grajagan on the reef at low tide picking up the shellfish which would be left to dry out, killing the shellfish, and then I guess the shells are sold to be used in belts, rings and other fashion items that use shells for decor. I guess similar things are happening across Indo and the Pacific - I can't help but think that is not a very sustainable business.