Shelling and Shark Tooth Hunting on Topsail Island

You can find fossil shark teeth and shells on Topsail Island most days of the year, and North Topsail Beach at the north end is the best-known spot for teeth. Go around low tide, look in the broken shell along the waterline, and try after a storm or a windy few days, when fall and winter often beat summer.

I'm Dipen, and I host Topsail Paradise, a house for up to 22 guests in North Topsail Beach, about a two-block walk from the beach. Shark tooth hunting is one of the easiest things to share with a big group, because grandparents and five-year-olds can do it side by side. Here's what I've learned about where to look, what you're allowed to keep, and how to stay clear of turtle nests and dunes.

Why does Topsail Island have so many shark teeth?

Because the coastal plain behind it is full of them. In a 2003 study presented to the Geological Society of America, researchers identified 300 fossil shark teeth from the North Topsail Beach shoreline, many of them, in their words, "too tiny and worn to be identified." The species ranged from ones found in very old Cretaceous deposits to younger ones from layers nearest the coast. The authors concluded that the teeth most likely come from normal erosion across the whole coastal plain, not from a single spot.

When is the best time to hunt for shark teeth on Topsail?

Three things matter more than how far you walk:

• The tide. The hour or two around low tide uncovers the most beach and the shell beds where teeth settle. Check a tide chart the night before.
• The weather. The best mornings follow a storm or a few days of strong wind, when waves have stirred up the bottom.
• The season. Fall and winter often beat midsummer, with bigger surf and far fewer people combing the same stretch. If you're visiting in the cooler months, our Topsail Island in winter guide covers what's open. Go early, too.

Where on the beach should you look?

Most first-timers look at the clean sand, and that's where the teeth aren't. Teeth are heavy, so they collect with other heavy bits:

• Shell hash: the bands of broken shell and dark gravel right at the waterline.
• Troughs: the shallow dips the falling tide leaves behind.
• The wrack line: the line of shells and debris left by the last high tide.

What you're looking for is a small triangle, glossy and usually black or dark gray, sometimes brown. Most are the size of a fingernail or smaller. Crouch down and scan a small patch at a time. Once you find your first one, you'll start seeing them everywhere.

Tip for kids: bring a kitchen colander or a sand sifter. Sifting a scoop of shell hash turns a slow hunt into a game.

What shells can you find on Topsail Island?

Expect a mix of small shells, broken pieces and the occasional whole prize: whelks, scallops, augers, coquina clams and sand dollars are among the common finds. The one to brag about is the Scotch bonnet, North Carolina's state shell since 1965. NCpedia notes it usually grows to about 3 to 3½ inches and has a plaid pattern of small orange squares. It's a rare find, so treat one as a lucky day.

What can you keep, and what should you leave?

On public beaches, you can keep what you find, with one big exception: anything alive. The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences says no permit is needed to collect fossils on state or municipal public land, and that beaches up to the high tide mark count as public land, so a shark tooth you find on the beach is yours to keep.

A few things to know:

• Leave live animals. If a shell has an animal inside, or a sand dollar is dark and fuzzy rather than bone white, put it back in the water.
• Federal land is different. The museum notes that collecting vertebrate fossils, which includes shark teeth, requires a permit on federal land, and that Onslow Beach on Camp Lejeune is restricted to military and Defense Department personnel.

What beach rules should shell hunters know?

The Town of North Topsail Beach's beach rules apply to treasure hunters too:

• Stay off the dunes. Walking on the dunes can bring a $500 fine, and walking on sandbags a $100 fine. Use the marked beach accesses.
• Fill your holes. Holes deeper than 12 inches must be filled before you leave them, and 30 minutes before sunset.
• Take your gear home. Anything left on the beach from 9 PM to 7 AM is removed, year-round.
• No glass on the beach.

How do you hunt without disturbing sea turtle nests?

Topsail Island is one of the most northern places where loggerhead sea turtles nest. The town's sea turtle page says nesting runs from mid-May through August, and the eggs incubate for about 60 days, so marked nests can still be on the beach into the fall.

• Keep your gear at least 20 feet from a marked nest, and nothing within 10 feet on the ocean side.
• Never touch a nest or a hatchling. The town notes that it's against federal law, even if a hatchling seems to be struggling.
• If you walk at night in season, use a red light, not a white flashlight.

Our sea turtle season guide covers nests, hatchlings and how to see the rescue center.

Why stay at the north end of the island?

If shark teeth are on the list, North Topsail Beach puts you closest to the best-known stretch. At Topsail Paradise the beach is about a two-block walk, so a low-tide hunt at sunrise is a short stroll, not a drive.

• 22 overnight guests in 8 bedrooms and 6.5 baths; see the bedroom layout.
• A private saltwater pool with free, self-serve heat from October 1 to May 15 (warm, not spa-hot), plus 2 hot tubs for after a chilly morning on the sand.
• From October through April the minimum stay is 3 nights.
• An optional 6-seat golf cart add-on (see the golf cart page for pricing). Military families who book direct get the cart free.

No pets, please. For more ideas on the island, see things to do in North Topsail Beach, then check dates on our booking page and save 15% by booking direct.

Happy hunting, and send me a photo of your best find.