New snail I didn't add...

[JoJosReef]

Found this tiny guy rummaging through my macroalgae frags. I haven't added any CUC in ages, so unless my Nassarius figured out how to reproduce viably in the tank, this is something else that hitchhiked its way in.

Took it out and left it in a tupper with saltwater overnight but it didn't make it:

Biggest concern would be if this is a whelk. I've had difficulties earlier this year keeping clams, and I'd like to know if there are/were clam predators in the tank. Any thoughts on species? @ISpeakForTheSeas ?

 

[Sophie"s mom]

IT looked more like a whelk to me, but I am no pro by any means. The snout of a nassarius is black, where the snout of a whelk is multi colored, kind of tattooed looking.

 

[BristleWormHater]

Dove snail, harmless cuc

 

[SliceGolfer]

I have a few of those that have popped up with my TBS rock. Haven't seen any problems so far with any corals.

 

[JoJosReef]

I have a few of those that have popped up with my TBS rock. Haven't seen any problems so far with any corals.

My TBS rocks are going on 3 years old, now, so I'd be surprised if this has been living in the tank for so long (and still so small).

 

[JoJosReef]

IT looked more like a whelk to me, but I am no pro by any means. The snout of a nassarius is black, where the snout of a whelk is multi colored, kind of tattooed looking.

Yup, I was having a hard look at that tattooed snout...

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Dove snail, harmless cuc

Yeah, this is probably the Dotted/Lettered Dove Snail, Euplica scripta - it's a keeper if so:

Look up Euplica scripta (it has a lot of color variations, so look at a bunch of different images to compare with) and see if that seems to be a match.

Euplica scripta is apparently primarily a sea grass-epiphytic algae-eater;* so it feeds primarily on algae that grows on sea grass; interestingly, this makes them (and a few other common Columbellids) quite different dietarily than the vast majority of their relatives.**

Cool!

*Source:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X21002727 **Source:

Molecular phylogeny of Columbellidae (Gastropoda: Neogastropoda) - PMC

The neogastropod family Columbellidae is a highly successful group of small, primarily epibenthic marine snails distributed worldwide and most abundant in the tropics. The great diversity of the group makes them attractive for studying evolutionary ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[JoJosReef]

Yeah, this is probably the Dotted/Lettered Dove Snail, Euplica scripta - it's a keeper if so:

Well that is quite unfortunate. It was hanging around my macroalgae frags, probably cleaning them! Unfortunate that it didn't survive the night in a Tupperware container with saltwater.