Description

🐌 Cerith Snail — Description & Care Guide

📌 Scientific Name: Cerithium spp.

📌 Common Names: Cerith Snail, Dwarf Cerith Snail, Spiny Cerith

📌 Origin: Caribbean, Indo-Pacific, and coastal areas worldwide

📌 Type: Marine Detritivore and Algae Grazer

🔍 Description

• Shell: Long, spiral shell with ridges or tiny spines; varies in color from brown and tan to gray

• Size: 0.5 to 1.5 inches (1.3–3.8 cm), depending on species

• Body: Small and dark, with an elongated foot for crawling on rock, sand, and glass

🧪 Aquarium Care

🏠 Tank Size

• Minimum: 10 gallons

• Ideal stocking: 1 snail per 5 gallons for effective cleanup coverage

🌡️ Water Parameters

• Temperature: 72–78°F (22–26°C)

• pH: 8.1–8.4

• Salinity: 1.023–1.025 SG

• Nitrates/Phosphates: Low — sensitive to poor water quality and copper

🧬 Behavior & Role

• Temperament: Peaceful

• Reef Safe: ✅ Yes

• Activity: Nocturnal — most active at night or in low light

• Main Roles:

  • Eats film algae, detritus, and decaying organic matter

  • Sifts sand — helps aerate and clean the substrate

  • Cleans crevices in live rock, glass, and base of coral colonies

🍽️ Diet & Feeding

• Diet: Omnivorous scavenger

• Eats:

  • Algae film

  • Diatoms

  • Detritus

  • Leftover fish food

• Supplement if necessary:

  • Algae wafers

  • Nori (dried seaweed)

  • Blanched vegetables (occasionally)

🪸 Tank Compatibility

• Compatible with:

  • Corals and all reef-safe inverts

  • Other peaceful snails (e.g., Trochus, Nassarius, Astrea)

  • Community reef fish

• Avoid:

  • Predators like wrasses, puffers, and some crabs that may pick at or eat snails

✅ Pros

• Excellent for cleaning both sand and rockwork

• Hardy and inexpensive

• Peaceful and completely reef-safe

• Small size makes it ideal for nano tanks or reaching tight spaces

• May reproduce in tanks (small larvae sometimes survive in stable systems)

⚠️ Cautions

• Cannot flip over easily if trapped on its back

• May hide for days during molting or rest periods

• Sensitive to rapid changes in salinity or copper-based medications