🐌 Checkered Nerite Snail (Nerita tessellata)
A Distinctive Checkerboard Shell of Alternating Dark and Light Squares • Steadily Grazes Film Algae and Diatoms Across Rock and Glass • A True Marine Species, Strictly Saltwater
 
📋 The Checkered Nerite Snail is a small, hardy marine snail instantly recognisable by its distinctive checkerboard shell pattern of alternating dark and light squares.
It comes from intertidal rocky shores across the Caribbean and Western Atlantic, a true marine snail; unlike some nerite species that tolerate brackish or freshwater, this one is strictly saltwater and belongs in a marine or reef aquarium. Every Checkered Nerite Snail we ship is feeding well.
Naturally peaceful and constantly grazing, this species spends its time steadily working across live rock and glass, consuming film algae, diatoms, and cyanobacteria, effective at keeping surfaces clean, though it won't touch most display macroalgae. This species typically has a shorter lifespan than some other cleanup crew snails, commonly around a year in captivity, and it rarely reproduces successfully in home aquariums, so it won't overpopulate your tank but also won't replace itself. It reaches 1.5-2cm, so a 40L tank suits it well.
 
💡 Highlights
♟️ Distinctive Checkerboard Shell: Bold alternating dark and light pattern
🌿 Effective Algae Grazer: Actively consumes film algae, diatoms, and cyanobacteria
🌊 Fully Marine Species: Strictly saltwater, unlike some other nerite species
🌊 Reef Safe: Won't harm corals, fish, or other invertebrates
⏳ Short Natural Lifespan: Typically around a year in captivity, a normal trait of the species