Snail ID please

[Santoki]

I see this little guy (~1cm) every night after the lights go out. It appears in the same relative location each night. It has a proboscis. I don't have a macro lens, so this is the best shot I could get with flash...
I want to make sure this guy is not something I need to worry about.

http://i26.tinypic.com/28hh5k6.jpg

[Ohiomom]

Maybe is the best answer I can give..may be a whelk..look them up if it is they are preditory..

[Santoki]

Out of the thousands of possible species it may be, there is no way to tell whether this one is a predator or a scavenger. It seems safe to say that between the two families commonly associated with the term "Whelk" this one looks to be from the Buccinidae family. Although that really doesn't tell me much either. I know there is a worm expert here on RC, but is there an expert for gastropod identification? I would rather not kill it just to be safe, as it has obviously been in there a while and has not yet (knock on wood) caused any harm.

[Ohiomom]

http://bb.wetwebmedia.com/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=2257

this may help..halfway down..

[Santoki]

Thanks for the link. It seems that the easiest determining factor for friend or foe are the eye stalks. Strombids, which look like whelks, have eye on top of stalks, while whelk eyes are at the base. If I understand correctly, I need to get rid of it if the eyes are at the base!
I still feel uneasy about this, wish someone could confirm id. Oh well, I will catch it tonight when it resurfaces.

[IFbettas]

I would just remove it. It's not worth the risk of keeping it around in my opinion. If you don't want to kill it you can always put it in the refugium/sump.