Black Devil Snail

The black devil snail, known in the hobby by that name, is a large snail from the coasts of the Indo-West Pacific. Its glossy black, long, tower-like tapering shell can reach 5–7 cm. In the wild it lives in brackish waters where rivers meet the sea and in mangroves. In the aquarium it does best in slightly salty (brackish) water; it can also adapt to hard, alkaline fresh water.

• 60 liters or more for a few individuals; fine sand substrate, which it occasionally burrows into.
• Brackish water (slightly salty, made with marine salt) or hard fresh water above pH 7.5; make changes slowly.
• Soft, acidic water quickly erodes the shell; a calcium source (coral sand, cuttlebone) is beneficial.
• Avoid products containing copper.

Omnivorous. It eats debris on the substrate, biofilm and algae; supplement with sinking tablets, spirulina and blanched vegetables. It may go hungry in a newly set-up aquarium with no food.

Completely peaceful and slow; it often sits partly buried in the sand. It does not harm plants.

Good companions: peaceful fish that like brackish water or tolerate hard water (mollies, some gobies), nerite snails.

Avoid: snail-eating fish (clown loach, pufferfish), crayfish, species that need soft, acidic water.