Junonia found on Sanibel
SaraBeth Metzger, of Asheville, North Carolina, found her first junonia on Jan. 4 in the late afternoon near the Island Inn on Sanibel. She and her wife, Shalene Pierce, were shelling when she found it. Pierce reported that the day before they were talking about junonias during a beach shelling walk and Metzger said, “I don’t think you find a junonia, I think it finds you … rolls right up to your feet.” The statement was more powerful the next day when Metzger stopped to listen to the shells washing in and out with the surf, looked down and saw the shell at her feet. Pierce noted that it was their second visit to the islands since Hurricane Ian in 2022. “We vacation on Sanibel regularly. We love the island!,” she said. “It is so magical — the junonia and the island of Sanibel!” To report a shell find, contact 239-472-1587 or trepecki@breezenewspapers.com.