What is this sea object?

by Dora
(North Carolina)

What is this sea object?

What is this sea object?

My Dad fought in WWII and got several of these from the Philippines. He said they came off something in the sea and called them "cat eyes". Do you know what these are? The bottom is flat with a swirl. E-mail me at dcarter_1(AT)MSN(DOT)COM if you know what this is.

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Jun 24, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Cats Eye
by: Anonymous

The name Cats Eye is a good name for these very pretty pieces of shell.I will be going back home to the Philippines in November and ever since I found My first Cats Eye in the early 90's have been wanting to collect some and set them in silver.Now I have a name for these little treasures,thanke Dora.Best regarde,Michael
Jun 23, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		THANKS!!!
by: Dora

Great to have an answer. My Dad brought five of them home and interestingly enough, he had five kids! He recently gave them to us. I'll let my siblings and parents know. Thanks for solving the mystery
Jun 23, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Thanks
by: Kari

Michael, Thanks for explaining what "Cat's Eyes" are. That makes sense and it's nice to have the mystery solved. I found this neat site that shows several types of opercula of different mollusks:

The Humble Operuclum
Jun 23, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		cats eye
by: michael rowan

I have a place in the Philippines and have seen quite a few of these.They are a type of door that a snail uses to close it's shell.The polished side fits into the mouth of the shell,and when the snail dies,the door becomes detached and you can find them on the beach.

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