Tiger Conch Sand Snail

Tiger Conch Sand Snails (Strombus sp. / Conomurex sp.) spend their days plowed under the sand and their nights on patrol, using a long, hardened operculum (the "foot claw") to literally pole-vault across the substrate — a locomotion style unique enough that watching one cross the tank floor is genuinely entertaining in a way that most snails aren't. The jerky, vaulting movement is how they escape predators and navigate around obstacles, and it works: these are fast by snail standards.

They're active sand-bed stirrers, plowing through the upper layers of the substrate to consume diatoms, cyanobacteria, detritus, and algae, which keeps the surface layer of the sand oxygenated and prevents the stagnant dead zones that build up in unstirred sand beds over time. In a tank with 3+ inches of sand, a small team of tiger conchs working the night shift does meaningful work.

They need actual sand depth to bury themselves and feed properly — a shallow sand bed (less than 1 inch) limits their behavior significantly, and a bare-bottom tank is not appropriate for this species. They're also sensitive to copper medications, which are lethal to all mollusks, so remove them before any copper-based treatment course.

Scientific name: Strombus sp. or Conomurex sp. (several species sold as tiger conch in the trade)
Origin: Indo-Pacific — sandy reef flats, seagrass beds, and intertidal sand zones
Water parameters: Temp 72–80°F · Salinity 1.023–1.026 · pH 8.1–8.4
Tank requirements: 30 gal minimum; sand bed of 2" or more required; cannot be kept in bare-bottom systems
Diet: Herbivore/detritivore — diatoms, cyanobacteria, algae, detritus, and organic matter in substrate
Compatibility: Reef safe; completely peaceful; will be eaten by aggressive predators
Husbandry note: Tiger conchs flip themselves upside down on smooth surfaces and can become stuck if they can't right themselves. Check that any conch on its back rights itself within a few hours — a persistently inverted conch needs to be turned over manually before it suffocates or desiccates its exposed foot.