top of page
SLUGS, SNAILS & WORMS
 Leopard Flatworm(Pseudoceros pardalis) Harmless - Pseudoceros pardalis, or the leopard flatworm is one of the most colorful and extraordinarily diverse marine flatworms. These worms are more like the predator animals themselves. The P. pardalis feeds off of injured animals, dead animals, bryozoans, and soft corals. The P. pardalis can also feed by absorbing nutrients through their skin. Its best not to touch as not to damage them. |  Fire Worm / Bearded FIreworm(Hermodice carunculata) PAINFUL. Avoid at all costs by not touching/standing on the rocks or reef. In a case of accidental contact, application and removal of adhesive tape will help remove the spines; applying alcohol or vinegar to the area will also help alleviate the pain. Cold water and ice soothe the pain of the poison that was injected from the bearded fireworm. White spines when disturbed inject neurotoxin. Can be orange - red and green. |  Lettuce Sea Slug(Elysia crispata) Harmless - This species is called the lettuce slug because it is often green in color, and it always has a very frilly edge. This makes the slug resemble the curly kinds of lettuce, such as the lollo rosso variety. The maximum length of this species is about 5 cm and 3 cm in width. The lettuce slug is extremely variable in color: it can also be blue, or very pale with red lines or yellow lines. |
|---|---|---|
 Spotted Sea Hare(Aplysia dactylomela) Harmless - Like the octopus, the Aplysia dactylomela squirts purple ink if it is disturbed; this ink is an irritant that causes 'altered behaviour' in other invertebrates and fish.[6] Their leathery skin contains toxins which make this sea hare practically inedible to most. Found in shallow waters, tide pools and rocky and sandy substrates, they also will be found feeding in beds of sea grass. During the day they will mostly hide under large rocks and in crevices. |  Harlequin Glass Slug(Cyerce cristallina) Harmless - Little is known about these rare creatures. Found in St. Thomas on a night dive - north side. |  Head Shield Slug(Chelidonura hirundinina) Harmless - A species of small and colorful aglajid sea slug, a shell-less opisthobranch gastropod mollusk. Seen spawning in Maho (STJ) in the spring. This species has a maximum size of 40 mm, but is often smaller than that. The background color can be red, orange, dark brown, or black. There are blue, black, and orange stripes on the body, and there is a white marking towards the posterior end of the animal. The two rather long "tails" at the end of the animal. |
 Apricot Sidegill Slug(Berthellina quadridens) Little to no information. This genus is in need of revision. Most, but not all, publications give the name Berthellina engeli to the orange Berthellina from the east Pacific and the Atlantic. See Lucas Cervera's message suggesting that Berthellina quadridens is the correct name for Caribbean specimens, and second message suggesting that east Pacific animals were B. ilisima. |  Striped Sea Hare(Navanax inermis) Harmless - Navanax inermis, common name the California aglaja, is a species of predatory sea slug, a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the family Aglajidae and the order Cephalaspidea, the headshield slugs and bubble snails. |  Queen Conch(Lobatus gigas) Harmless - Unfortunately, queen conch are particularly vulnerable to overfishing – they grow slowly, aren’t able to reproduce until late in life, and reproduce in groups in shallow water, making them easy to harvest in large quantities. Because queen conch are in such high demand, overharvest has depleted their populations in several areas. In Florida, commercial and sport conch fisheries completely collapsed by the mid-1970s. Read more at link below. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE SHELLS |
 Florida Fighting Conch(Strombus pugilis) Harmless - The shell color varies from salmon-pink, cream or yellow to light or strong orange, and the interior of the aperture is usually white. They have beautiful small BLUE eyes. trombus pugilis is known to be a herbivore, feeding on plants and algae and has been seen breeding at Maho (STJ) and Secret Harbor (STT) |  Milk Conch(Strombus costatus) Lobatus costatus, commonly known as the milk conch, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. Smaller than the Queen Conch with a interior mantle that is white vs pink. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE SHELLS FROM THE OCEAN. |  Kings Helmet Snail(Cassis tuberosa) Harmless - The king helmet, Cassis tuberosa, is a species of very large sea snail with a solid, heavy shell, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Cassidae. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE SHELLS FROM THE OCEAN. |
 True Tulip Snail(Fasciolaria tulipa) usually lives in sand flats and seagrass beds, especially where the turtle grass (scientific name Thalassia testudinum) is present, at depths of nearly 30 feet. This snail eats bivalves and various other gastropods including the banded tulip Fasciolaria lilium, and the queen conch Eustrombus gigs. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE SHELLS FROM THE OCEAN. |  Tritons (Atlantic) Trumpet Snail(Charonia variegata) Harmless - pictured eating its target prey - a starfish. The maximum recorded shell length is 374 mm.[4] This conical shell has an elongated and sharply pointed spire without any knobs, but somewhat squatter than the spire of the Pacific Charonia tritonis. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE SHELLS FROM THE OCEAN. |  Flamingo Tongue Snail(Cyphoma gibbosum) It is about once inch long and can be observed atached to gorgonians upon which it exclusively feeds. Unlike nudibranchs, flamingo tongue snails have a shell; however, the shell is typically not visible in living animals due to the mantle flesh covering it. When alive, the snail appears yellow-orange with irregular shaped spots ringed in black. However, the mantle can be retracted, exposing the shell. This snail is extremely over-collected and must be protected. |
 Cowries(Cypraeidae) Cowries have adult shells which are very rounded, almost like an egg; they do not look like a typical gastropod shell. In virtually all of the species in the family Cypraeidae, the shells are extremely smooth and shiny. This is because in the living animal, the shell is nearly always fully covered with the mantle. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE SHELLS FROM THE OCEAN. |  Nerite Snails(Nerita versicolor) Harmless - The Nerite Snail comes from the inner tidal areas of the Pacific and Caribbean Oceans and has a rounded shell. This snail does not grow very large, and the coloration is brown to black. They are wonderful scavengers for reef. |  West Indian Top Snail(Cittarium pica) Harmless - is considered the third most economically important invertebrate species in the Caribbean, after the spiny lobster and the queen conch and is edible. It has gone locally extinct in some habitats due to overfishing and overexploitation. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE SHELLS FROM THE OCEAN. |
 Rough Fire Clam (Flame Scallop)(Lima scabra) Harmless - The flame scallop or rough fileclam, scientific name Ctenoides scaber, is a species of saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Limidae the file clams. Despite their common name, flame scallops are not closely related to true scallops. Flame scallops have a rough shell and a red mantle. At the edge of the mantle are red and white tentacles. The flame scallop's vibrant red color is due to the large amount of carotenoids found within their body. |  Antillean Fileclam(Lima pellucida) Harmless - usually found under rocks where they filter feed. Small usually under 1 inch. © Florent Charpin |  Flat Tree Oyster(Isognomon alatus) Harmless - The flat tree oyster has two thin, irregularly shaped valves joined by a long straight hinge. The exterior is sculptured by a large number of rough, concentric rings with loose flakes and varies in colour from a pale brownish olive to a purplish black. The nacre on the inside is lustrous and cream coloured shaded with purplish brown. The shell is attached to the substrate by a byssus thread and grows to about 3.7 in. in length. |
 Atlantic Thorny Oyster(Spondylus americanus) Harmless - The valves of the shell are roughly circular and the upper one is decorated with many spiny protuberances up to 2.0 in long. When growing in a crevice, the shape of the shell adapts itself to the available space. The colour varies but is usually white or cream with orange or purplish areas making it well camouflaged. © Florent Charpin |  Atlantic Wing Oyster(Pteria colymbus) Harmless - Pteria colymbus, or the Atlantic winged oyster, is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Pteriidae. It can be found along the Atlantic coast of North America, ranging from North Carolina to Bermuda and Brazil. © Florent Charpin |  Amber Pen Shell(Pinna carnea) Harmless - The amber pen shell burrows as it grows but the wide posterior end of the shell always remains exposed so water from above the seafloor can be drawn through the inhalent chamber of the mantle cavity. Typical of bivalves, water is drawn over gills or ctenidium by the beating of cilia where oxygen from the water is absorbed. Suspended food and other water-borne nutrients also become trapped in mucus, which is then transported to the mouth, digested and expelled as feces. |
 Chitons(Chiton Species) Harmless - Chitons have a dorsal shell which is composed of eight separate shell plates or valves. These plates overlap somewhat at the front and back edges, and yet articulate well with one another. |  Christmas Tree Worms(Spirobranchus giganteus) Harmless - The multicolored spirals are highly derived structures for feeding and respiration. Spirobranchus giganteus is similar to most tube-building worms. It has a tubular, segmented body lined with chaeta, small appendages that aid the worm's mobility. Because it does not move outside its tube, this worm does not have any specialized appendages for movement or swimming. |  Magnificent Feather Duster Worm(Sabellastarte magnifica) Harmless - Their oldest fossils are known from the Early Jurassic period. Feather-duster worms have a crown of feeding appendages or radioles in two fan-shaped clusters projecting from their tubes when under water. Each radiole has paired side branches making a two-edged comb for filter feeding. Retract when threatened. © Florent Charpin |
 Yellow Fan Worm(Notaulax occidentalis) Harmless - Filter feeder - shy and retracts into tube when threatened. Bright yellow to pale and can be variegated with brown. |  Social Feather Duster(Bispira brunnea) Harmless - The social feather duster, Bispira brunnea, is a species of marine bristleworm native to the Caribbean Sea. |  Variegated Feather Duster(Bispira variegata) Harmless - usually inhabit sandy areas or low lying reef. Retreat into tube when threatened. © Florent Charpin |
bottom of page