Olive Snail

Care Summary

The Olive Snail is a sleek, polished-shelled predator from the Atlantic coast that spends most of its life buried just beneath the sandbed surface, hunting small invertebrates and scavenging meaty detritus. It needs a deep, fine sandbed to burrow in and a tank of at least 30 gallons, and it's best suited for fish-only or biotope systems rather than typical mixed reef tanks with diverse cleanup crews. Because it actively hunts worms, small clams, and other soft-bodied sandbed inhabitants, it will systematically reduce the population of any other invertebrates living in or on the substrate over time. Feed it by placing small pieces of meaty food like clam, mussel, or shrimp directly on the sandbed surface, and it will emerge quickly at feeding time once it learns the routine.