Poly-extant (PowerUp 100%)

_{"The beauty of Polymita has no land, river or maritime rival." Canon EOS 80D with Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 AS UMC; 1/60 sec at f/8, ISO 250 (photo by: author)}

Polymita is a group of land mollusks exclusive to Cuba, with the most beautifully colored shells in the world. Polymita is an ancient Greek word that means "many stripes". There are a total of 6 species.

_{Specimens used in the theme photo starting from top left corner and clockwise: Polymita picta nigrolimbata, P. venusta, P. picta, P. muscarum. (photo by: author)}

Actually, the theme photo was assembled in my studio since Polymita are arboreals. They live in coffee, ficus, coconut, and guava trees, however, they do not attack these as they feed exclusively on fungi and lichens and incidentally clean the leaves and stems.

_{I used the morning light filtered with a translucent reflector to soften the shadows. (photo by: author)}

For the composition I collected barks from various trees in the National Botanical Garden of Cuba, including barks covered with moss and lichen. I used a tray covered with a black T-shirt, on top of it I placed the barks. The shells belong to a collection that I have kept since my adolescence.

Speaking of which, Polymita are critically endangered due to the indiscriminate trade of their shells. A specimen can cost up to 65 USD. Since 2017 its trade has been prohibited but still the careless capture continues.