Ey, it's summer time again! And the best place to get that sun-kissed skin would be the beach. You swim and you snorkel in the azure-colored waters, and you walk on the white sand beach (okay, could be black, gray, pebbly, rocky... you get what I mean).
Then you see a living, slow-crawling sea shell (specifically, the one we call cone shell) and you badly need to pick it up. Admire it, maybe even talk to it like you're talking to your... puppy?....
DON'T!!
You see, when environmentalists tell you to leave nothing but footprints and take nothing but pictures, they just partly mean to save nature from man. The other half of the story is to save man from nature. Yeah... it gets a bit AlGoristic that's headed towards an inconvenient truth here.
Let's just get straight to the point!
A number of species of cone shells are highly venomous, A.K.A deadly. Yup, one cone shell can kill your entire family (I mean, its very strong venom. Don't get this crazy imagination of a cone shell doing ninja moves stabbing your family members one by one. It's plain anime, okay?). A cone shell's venom, no matter how small it is, is more deadly than most snakes'.
When you pick up a live shell (pun intended), It will stick out its weapon and stab your pointer or stubby finger (or your groin if you put it in your pocket). That tiny pin-prick can almost immediately put you into shock and probably kill you in a few minutes.
So the next time you decide to do a romantic walk on the beach, leave ALL the shells alone. Don't bring home any souvenir. It's good for the environment and YOUR safety.
If you want to know more, just google "poisonous cone shells."
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