something on my snail shell

[jonfr]

There is some shell looking animal on my snail.

Here is the best picture I was able to get.

It is black and it lives on the snail shell, leaving a mark on it. I have no idea what it is.

 

[pagojoe]

Hi Jon,

Even though the animal attached to your conch looks like a Keyhole Limpet, I believe it belongs to the family Hipponicidae. Hipponix species often erode the spot where they attach to their host shells, and may actually make holes all the way through the host shells. They generally aren't a problem for the host, as they are detritus feeders. You can read more about these snails here:

http://seashellsofnsw.org.au/Hipponicidae/Pages/Hipponicidae_intro.htm

Pics of a few species in the family here:

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

Cheers,



Don

 

[jonfr]

Thanks for the answer. The shell looks mostly like this shell (Hipponix grayanus).

I have tried to remove it, but it is impossible (or almost?), as it is really stuck to the shell of the snail.

 

[pagojoe]

You are right, they are almost impossible to remove with your fingers. You may be able to get the edge of a sharp knife under the shell and pop it off, or simply place the edge of the knife at the edge of the shell and press downward at an angle (this usually breaks the Hipponix shell). The easiest way if you don't want to save the Hipponix shell is to press straight down on the shell with a knife, causing it to shatter. Whichever way you do it, the shell will detach from the Hipponix animal, and the animal will still be stuck to your conch until you scrape it off. It will leave a scar on your conch shell that may look worse than leaving the Hipponix attached, so you might want to just leave it as it is.

Cheeers,



Don