Fighting or Queen Conch

ohioreef

ohioreef

Member
My LFS has a conch that they have listed as a "sand sifting strombus conch."
Does anyone know whether this is a fighting or queen conch?
How can I tell the difference?
Thanks.
 
C

capschamp

Guest
is it strombus alatus, or strombus gigas?
alatus=fighting
gigas=queen
other than that i think the queens are larger and have bigger spikes on the shell.
 
wrassecal

wrassecal

Active Member
Scientific way to tell is if the bumps across the middle are nubby it's a fighting. If they are spiky it's a queen. At lfs I've seen both at the same size. I have a queen since we never get fighting around here.
 
ohioreef

ohioreef

Member
Thanks all!!
Now that I think of it, I do think that there may have been another word in the name. I'll have to swing by tomorrow and have a look.
Capschamp, I like your avatar!! Go Bucks!! :cheer:
 
wrassecal

wrassecal

Active Member

Originally posted by Tina
sand sifting is fighting...unless it doesnt actuyally sift sand...
Fighting and Queen conchs "shift" sand rather than "sift" it. They are stirrers and all the good stuff stays:D
 
tina

tina

Member
Most lfs refer to "sifting" as "shifting"
Queens don't clean the sand bed like fighting do of diatoms.
 
wrassecal

wrassecal

Active Member

Originally posted by Tina
Most lfs refer to "sifting" as "shifting"
Queens don't clean the sand bed like fighting do of diatoms.
You have to be careful on those terms.
Sifters- process the sand and ingest beneficial bacteria and fauna in a functing deep sand bed that requires anaerobic zones.
Shifters - move the top layer of sand around and eat detritus keeping the top layer looking nice and clean. Fighting conchs, queen conchs and nassarius snails are good shifters.
I had 2 queen conchs in my 135 gal for almost two years and they definately eat diatom casings. They stayed on the sand. Generally, when you buy them they are about the same size. I bought mine at about 1 inch and in about 2 years they were only about 3 inches.
Phipps - I looked at your pic and can't tell. Here is a pic of one of mine...HTH
 
wrassecal

wrassecal

Active Member
Here is another where you can see the spikes better. I hope it helps you identify what you have. The spikes go all the way across. Sorry the resolution isn't so good. I had to really reduce the size.
 
ohioreef

ohioreef

Member
Mine definately does not have the spikes. Do fighting conchs NOT have the spikes? I was under the impression that they had them, but they weren't as pronounced as the queen conch.
 
clarkiiboi

clarkiiboi

Active Member
Both do have "pronounced" or noticable bumps, if yours is completely smooth then it may not be either one. I bought 2 fighting conch here, and the bumps looked different. I figured out one was a queen. Having them in the same tank helped (alot) to see what everyone meant. If your shell is truely smooth then IMHO its not either a queen or fighting, but something else. Future reference: fighting (think of a boxer, they fight and in rounds) hince the rounded bumps/spikes. That is how I make sence of it.
 
ohioreef

ohioreef

Member
Anyone have any ideas what it might be? It's definately a conch. What other varieties might it be?
He is staying on the sandbed and doing a good job so I guess I won't worry too much, although I would like to know what he is.
 
ohioreef

ohioreef

Member
He's about 1.5" right now. Other than the smooth shell, he looks like a fighting/queen conch.
I've got some nassarius snails and he looks nothing like them.
I thought I saw somewhere mention of a "grazing conch?"
 
ohioreef

ohioreef

Member
No, I don't think so. I've been watching for them to get a conch in and I snagged him up when I saw him. I think he's the only one they had, at least I only saw one.
 
C

capschamp

Guest
phipps- i think your conch is a different kind of conch(not fihgting or queen). they are related to nassarious snails(i think).
 
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