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sea shell accessory?

When a mollusk (sea shell accessory) is invaded by a parasite or is irritated by a foreign object that the animal cannot eject, a process known as encystation entombs the offending entity in successive, concentric layers of nacre (sea shell accessory). This process eventually forms what we call pearls and continues for as long as the mollusk lives.

Shells are very durable and outlast the otherwise soft-bodied animals that produce them by a very long time. Large amounts of shells may form sediment and become compressed into limestone. Shells that wash up on beaches are called seashells, and are collected by some enthusiasts.
The truth is we often don’t know how the shells were collected. Some shells are collected empty (or dead) but probably most are collected live and the animals within die. This is simply because if one collects only the empty shells, they are often faded and not colorful or attractive as they are when the animal is still alive inside.

In the case of mollusks collected for food, such as clams, mussels, etc. the market for shells is a by-product of food collecting and shouldn’t be a problem. But sometimes the commercial shell dealers buy in huge lots, and may pay fishermen to dredge or trawl for shells in very large quantities that could be depleting the stock.