The Astraea Turbo Snail is an attractive snail with a ravenous appetite for algae. While entertaining to observe in your home aquarium, the Astraea Turbo Snail serves a greater function as a tireless addition to your reef-cleaner crew, feasting on algae-covered live rock. It is very adept at keeping your aquarium clean. In fact, this small herbivore prefers to feed on nuisance hair algae, as well as cyanobacteria and diatoms. Some aquarists also report that the Astraea Turbo Snail actually consumes the entire hair algae structure, which helps prevent immediate further algae growth.

Unlike many bottom dwellers dressed in drab colors to better camouflage themselves, Astraea tecta boasts an ornate pyramid-shape shell with beautiful, olive green coloration. Since some individuals have projections on the shell that give it a star-like outline, the Astraea Turbo is also known as the Astraea Star Snail or Astraea Conehead Snail.

The Astraea Turbo Snail prefers well-established aquariums with ample hiding places and sufficient room to roam. In addition to eating algae off of your live rock, this member of the Astraeinae family will also clean your aquarium glass. Care needs to be taken to observe the daily activities of this hungry snail since it has difficulty righting itself if it falls or is knocked upside down.

Like other invertebrates, the Astraea Turbo Snail is sensitive to high nitrate levels and will not tolerate copper-based medications. Since the Astraea Turbo Snail cannot tolerate even minute changes in water parameters, it requires gradual acclimation preferably utilizing the drip acclimation method over the course of several hours.

If sufficient food levels are not present, supplement the diet with blanched spinach or lettuce and vegetable-based tablet foods.

Approximate Purchase Size:  1/2" to 1"

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