Enrique Lopez-Tapia / Hamer women in traditional clothing at the Jumping of the bulls ceremony. Ethiopia, November 2014

Jurgen Freund / Chambered nautilus (Nautilus pompilius) with red whip coral. Osprey Reef, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia.

Stephen Dalton / Close-up of a shell, UK.

MYN / Lily Kumpe / Composite of seashells from beach on Bali, Indonesia. Meetyourneighbtous.net project

Philippe Clement / Common / Edible cockle (Cerastoderma / Cardium edule) shells on beach, Belgium

Jurgen Freund / Jewelmer Pearlfarm, Goldlip pearl oyster (Pinctada maxima) with golden pearl on beach, Palawan, Philippines, May 2009

Billy Black / Starfish in half Oyster (Lophia folium) shell lying on bed of seaweed. Pumpkin Island, Maine, USA.

Lynn M Stone / Mixed sea shells on beach, Sarasata, Florida, USA

Ernie Janes / RF - Mass of Razor shells (Ensis siliqua) washed up on Titchwell beach, Norfolk, England, UK. March. (This image may be licensed either as rights managed or royalty free.)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Common cockle (Cerastoderma edule)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Big-ear radix (Lymnaea auricularia)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Asian Clam (Corbicula fluminea)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Common oyster (Ostrea edulis)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Common limpet (Patella vulgata)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Freshwater nerite (Theodoxus fluviatilis)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Freshwater limpet (Acroloxus lacustria)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Depressed mussel (Anadonta complanata)

Chris Shields / Illustration of Common Mussel (Mytilus edulis)

Philippe Clement / Complete and fragmented shells washed ashore on wrack zone / wrack line on sandy beach along the North Sea coast at low tide, Belgium, June

Juan Carlos Munoz / Seashells collected outside Panyee fishing village. Phang Nga Bay, Andaman Sea, Thailand.

Juan Carlos Munoz / Seashells collected outside Panyee fishing village. Phang Nga Bay, Andaman Sea, Thailand.

Magnus Lundgren / Wild Wonders of China / Fiddler crab (Uca) male, hiding in an old shell at Ha Pak Nai mudflat, Yuen Long District, Hong Kong, China.

Magnus Lundgren / Wild Wonders of China / Fiddler crab (Uca) male, hiding in an old shell at Ha Pak Nai mudflat, Yuen Long District, Hong Kong, China.

Staffan Widstrand / Seashells collected from beach, Triton Bay, Mainland New Guinea, Western Papua, Indonesian New Guinea

Sue Daly / Various shells on Shell Beach, Herm, British Channel Islands, June 2016

Sue Daly / Various shells on Shell Beach, Herm, British Channel Islands, June 2016

Ernie Janes / Empty Cockle Shells washed up on shore of Solway, Dumfries, Scotland, UK, June.

Enrique Lopez-Tapia / Shells on coast of the Banc d'Arguin National Park, Banc d'Arguin National Park UNESCO World Heritage Site, Mauritania.

Enrique Lopez-Tapia / Shells on the coast, Banc d'Arguin National Park UNESCO World Heritage Site, Mauritania.

Enrique Lopez-Tapia / Shells on the coast, Banc d'Arguin National Park UNESCO World Heritage Site, Mauritania.

Nick Upton / Violet / Stony / Rock sea urchin (Paracentrotus lividus) shell on white background, collected in Greece.

Nick Upton / Violet / Stony / Rock sea urchin (Paracentrotus lividus) shell on sand, Greece.

Nick Upton / Purple sea urchin (Sphaerechinus granularis) shell on sand, Greece.

Nick Upton / Black sea urchin (Arbaxia lixula) shell on sand, Greece.

Nick Upton / Black sea urchin (Arbaxia lixula) shells on white background, Greece.

Nick Upton / Violet / Stony / Rock sea urchin (Paracentrotus lividus) shell on white background, collected in Greece.

Nick Upton / Violet / Stony / Rock sea urchin (Paracentrotus lividus) shell on sand, Greece.

Nick Upton / Violet / Stony / Rock sea urchin (Paracentrotus lividus) shell on sand, Greece.

Nick Upton / Violet / Stony / Rock sea urchin (Paracentrotus lividus) shell on sand, Greece.

Pascal Kobeh / Marine animals such as shells and starfish / sea stars are collected to be sold as souvenirs to tourists, Isla de Mujeres, Yucatan peninsula, Mexico

Alex Hyde / Natural accumulation of mollusc shells, mainly bivalves, washed up on the strandline, Anglesey, Wales, UK. December.

Alex Hyde / Detail of Queen scallop shell (Aequipecten / Chlamys opercularis). Anglesey, Wales, UK. December.

Alex Hyde / Natural accumulation of mollusc shells, mainly bivalves including a Queen scallop (Aequipecten / Chlamys opercularis), washed up on the strand line, Anglesey, Wales, UK. December.

Gerrit Vyn / Juvenile Sanderling (Calidris alba) foraging. Nakdong Estuary, Busan, South Korea. October.

Eric Baccega / Young Hamer tribe woman with traditional necklaces and hair covered with a mixture of ochre and animal fat, Omo valley, Ethiopia, March 2015.

Joris van Alphen / Common lobster (Homarus gammarus) at a water pumping station in the Grevelingen, the Netherlands. October.

Ernie Janes / Sea shells on beach including Razor clams (Ensis silqua) and Cockle shells, Norfolk, England, UK, February.