What type of snail is this?

[MikeP471612]

I know the pic totaly sucks but what do you think? The shell is very smooth and light brownish in color.

Thanks

In the pic he is kinda up side down. The dark part is the snail and the rest is the shell.

 

[pagojoe]

It looks to be a cowry shell, but I can't tell which one without a little better focus. There are several fairly common ones that have a black animal. It might be Cypraea (Palmadusta) clandestina. If it's that species, you should be able to see faint zigzag markings on the dorsum if you hold it under bright light.

http://www.sydneyshellclub.net/icon/liveshellsNSW/Cypraea_clandestina.jpg

Cheers,



Don

 

[Sk8r]

Could even be a strombus grazer. If you see them using a strand of silk to descend from a rock, that's what they are---will breed in the tank, and are good little algae eaters who get where other snails can't reach: miniature members of the conch family, about a third of an inch long.

 

[greenbean36191]

miniature members of the conch family, about a third of an inch long.

Actually, they're columbellids and aren't related to conchs at all. The name Strombus grazer is erroneous. They're actually in a family of whelks.

 

[MikeP471612]

It looks like some type of cowry snail. Mixed info on whether it's reef safe. Anybody know for sure?

 

[pagojoe]

I don't think it will eat anything you don't want it to. It will mostly hide and scrape the little microorganisms off the bottoms of your rocks, and may do the same on your glass. It's omnivorous, so it will eat algae as well as the microorganisms. Larger ones can bulldoze the stuff in your tank, but you shouldn't have that problem with the smaller species. I'd leave it in the tank, unless you notice that it spends a lot of time on some particular thing that you don't want it "tasting."

Cheers,



Don