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View Full Version : ID? Snails?


Diver4life
11/04/2007, 08:21 PM
Need some id on these creatures Please, good or bad?
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/167165n.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/1671656.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/167165bb.JPG

pagojoe
11/05/2007, 10:38 AM
The first snail is a Nassarius, but it's hard to tell which species from a single photo taken from the side, angling from the spire. Makes it hard to judge width versus length, and hard to tell how strong the sculpture is from your photo. In any case, it's a good guy to have in your tank. Probably in the subgenus Niotha.

http://www.gastropods.com/Taxon_pages/TN_Family_NASSARIIDAE_NASSARIINAE.html

The second one is a Caecum species. I'm not sure what they eat, but they are small enough that I'd guess they won't be any problem in a reef tank.

http://www.gastropods.com/Taxon_pages/TN_Family_CAECIDAE_CAECINAE.html

I'm not sure about the third one, since the pic is fuzzy and any shell that I might be familiar with is covered by the mantle, assuming it's a snail. I don't recognize the forked rear end of the foot, but it may be a small marginellid. They can be hard to identify in the best of circumstances. If it's a marginellid, it will eat small animals in your tank, probably the tiny animals in your sand bed, but I doubt a single marginellid would do enough damage to justify removing him.

Cheers,



Don

Diver4life
11/05/2007, 08:36 PM
Thanks for your repbly ,Im feel better now.