Stomatellid Snails, easy question

bdubbya

bdubbya

Member
Hello. Quick question. In most or all pics seen of the S. snails, the shell curves in a counter-clockwise way. Can they be clockwise?
Recent observation late at night has revealed many of these creatures, and they look almost to a "T" of what a stomatellid snail looks like, except like said, these shells I'm looking at firsthand are clockwise.
Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Hmmm, any chance for a picture? And are you looking just at the shells from a dead specimen?
"Mistakes" do happen but the majority of snails are "right handed" (if you are holding the spire of the shell in your hand, the opening where the animal comes out is on the right side. A few snails do not follow this rule, but most do. But now and then it does happen that there is an error or something. It would be interesting to see a picture!
 
bdubbya

bdubbya

Member
LOL Okay guys, thanks for the help.
Tonight I'll catch some more (the two that were pulled off the glass for examination were thrown away) and take pictures.
Looking in Anthony Calfo/Robbert Fenners book: "Reef Invertebrates", in the Mollusks: Snails & Chitons chapter, there is one picture only of what they term "Stomatellid snail" with no information about them provided.
This is exactly what the snails look like, a slight twist at the end of the body; but the picture depicts it as "curving to the right" at the end of the snail. All pictures found online match the one in Calfo and Fenners book.
Both pulled from my tank at home were the exact opposite, curving to the left.
Having read much about them today, it seems they are benign algae eaters, but want to make sure about it before launching an all out offensive against them.
Thanks again.
 
bdubbya

bdubbya

Member
They were all involved in a what seemed a feast on the sides of the tank that are not cleaned. None were observed on the LR, SPS, or clams.
 
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