Nassarius reticulatus ‘whelk’

Beschreibung

Nassarius reticulatus - The useful whelk for the marine aquarium

Description and features

Nassarius reticulatus, the whelk, is a small to medium-sized marine snail with a characteristically ribbed, elongated shell and a long, clearly visible siphon. The shell is usually beige-brown to gray with a fine pattern. Its large crawling foot makes it very mobile - especially when searching for food.

Keeping in a marine aquarium

The whelk is an extremely useful and robust inhabitant. It spends most of the day buried in the substrate and comes out in a flash as soon as it smells food. This behavior aerates the sand and prevents unwanted rotting zones. It is absolutely peaceful and can easily be kept with fish, shrimps, crabs and corals.

A sandy or finely mixed substrate is important so that it can dig in.

Care and nutrition

Nassarius reticulatus is a cleaner and recycler of leftovers. It eats:

• Detritus

• Feed residues

• small organic waste

• dead material (scavengers)

In very clean aquaria it can occasionally be fed with small portions of frozen food. It does not eat algae.

With its useful cleaning effect, its activity and its interesting behavior, the whelk is an ideal helper in reef and sand tanks.