Turbo Snails

Turbo snails are a stereotypical reef tank cleaner, and most reef tanks have some.  They eat algae from smooth surfaces such as rock and glass and are a real benefit in almost every marine aquarium.

There are many types available. Turbo snails are members of the Superfamily Trochoidea and superficially they all look pretty much the same, a pointy snail rather like an upside down ice cream cone.

The problem is that they are NOT all the same. They are generally all herbivores who rasp their food from surfaces using their rough tongue like radula.  But, they bear different shaped teeth and so they eat different forms of algae.  Worse still, some don't even come from the tropics but from temperate waters and so are unsuited to life in a reef tank.

Regardless of species, there are three keys to success with turbo snails

1/ They die if exposed to copper, any copper.

2/They need to be acclimated into your tank slowly and carefully.  Snails have a very fragile and complex internal circulatory system which responds very poorly to rapid changes in salinity.

3/ With many kinds if they topple over they cannot get back up. So keep your eye on them and right any you find fallen over

Various "Turbo" Snails are sold for aquariums, details below:

Turbo Snails (Astraea Tecta)  Conehead Snail, Star Snail or Astrea Snail.

These are the most commonly available “turbo snails” on the UK market. They are pyramidal in shape and some have projections on the shell which give them a star-like outline when viewed from above.  These usually come from the cool waters of Baja California or Florida and are not really at home in typical reef tank temperatures.  Worse still they inhabit rocky substrates rather than sand and they are consequently pretty much unable to right themselves if they topple over on a 'flatish' surface.  In short these guys are sometimes a pretty bad idea. 

Turbo Snails (Turbo setosus)

A much better bet these guys come from the much warmer waters around the Philippines and are able to right themselves after a tumble.

The snail on the left is Turbo. setosus, the snail on the right is Astraea tecta.

Note the slanted stance of Astraea and the more upright pose of the setosus, this is an easy way to tell them apart at a glance.

Tegula funebralis the margarita snail and its close relative Tegula brunnea

(Thanks to NOAA for the pictures)

These guys are NOT tropical snails and have no place in a reef tank. So much so that they are pretty common in Alaska

Turban Snail (Turbo fluctuosa)

A typical turban snail has its opening off-set from the vertical axis running through the apex.  The whorls which make up the shell are rounded and very noticeable like the turns of a turban after which the snail is named. Normally a good bet as an aquarium snail.  However some are collected from the cooler waters of California and may not be so suitable.  A better bet is the ones collected from off Mexico.

There is also another Turban snail Norrisia norrisi on the market (the red/red footed turban snail).  These guys live on giant kelp in the cool waters off California, so not a good choice for the reef aquarium!

(Our thanks to University of California
Santa Cruz for allowing us to use this photograph)