• Class     Neritaemorphi Koken, 1896
• Order    Neritoidea Rafinesque, 1815
• Family    Neritidae Rafinesque, 1815
• Genus    Neritina
• Species: Neritina turrita ( Gmelin, J.F., 1791 )

Description:

Shell:

• ovoid, conical, matte 
• short apex, a little more elongated than that of V. coromandeliana
• variable dark banded patterns, or spiralling patterns/dots
• light to dark brown, orange brown basic color
• aperture and septum: white to orange, approx. 7 central denticles
• size:  up to 35 mm , height 20 mm
• Operculum:

 

• white to dirty orange with a red line on the rim
• Körper:
• black-white pattern
• grey sole
• thread-like tentacles

Range, natural habitat:

• Tropical climates, 22 – 32 °C
• Indo-Pazific
• Brackish water/mangroves, living on the ground in soft substrate
• Freshwater river estuaries  

Development and Reproduction:

• dioecious, no outward differences
• the female attaches whiteish, hard, oval cocoons to hard substrates
• hatched Veliger larvae wander from fresh to brackish water to marine waters. On the journey back they develop into snails.
• Thus, reproduction in the aquarium can practically be ruled out.
• The editor does not have data about the life span of these snails. Individual specimens have been kept in tanks for five years.

               Food:

• tirelessly grazes on hard substrates (hard green algae), but prefers digging in the ground   
• digs in the muck and eats there    
• takes artificial food
• vegetables, leaves 

Socialization/Aquarium:

It is not very vulnerable to attacks and can thus be kept together with various fish species. Dwarf shrimp and other gastropods with the exception of Anentome helena are unproblematic. They should be kept in small groups as they like company. Unobtrusive worker, only leaves the water when about to starve or when massively bothered in the tank. The tanks should have algae when this snail is put in, as these wild-caught gastropods do not eat artificial food at first. However, Neritina turrita will take additional food offered to it pretty soon.

 

Sources:

• Archiv für Molluskenkunde der Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft, Band 105    Rolf A.M. Brandt, 1974
• SysTx Uni – Ulm ( Species location )
• microseashell.com
• sealifebase.org (important facts )
• discoverlife.org (range map )
• shell.kwansei.ac.jp ( Gehäusemuster )

Author: Alexandra Behrendt

Translator: Ulrike Bauer

aktualized on April 18, 2009

 

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