Tiger Nassarius Snail (Babylonia spirata)
The Tiger Nassarius Snail (Babylonia spirata) known to tropical fish keeping enthusiasts as the Babylonian snail, Leopard nassarius snail, Lion snail, Ivory whelk snail, Spotted Babylon snail, Spiral Babylon, Butterscotch Nassarius, Puramutta chankm, Baigae snail, or Babylonia sp. is widely distributed in Indo-Pacific waters, particularly, from the Western Indian Ocean to Bali, Indonesia. In India, Babylonia spirata has been recorded from the southeast and southwest coasts and the waters around Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Babylonia spirata are carnivorous, opportunistic scavengers that prefer warm waters. They are mostly nocturnal and generally found in the silt or sandy benthic zones of the marine coastal waters of their range, at depths from 15 to over 100 ft, where they bury themselves within the substrate.
The Tiger Nassarius Snail (Babylonia spirata) is often misidentified as Babylonia areolata or Babylonia zeylanica which is almost identical but grows a bit larger (up to 3 inches). Also, in comparison to Babylonia spirata; Babylonia zeylanica’s shell has slightly impressed sutures and is mostly distributed in Indian and Sri Lankan waters. All three have similar behavior but the Spotted Babylon snail is larger than members of the Nassarius species.
Babylonia Spirata is one of the most beautiful snail species in the aquarium hobby.
It is also an edible snail that provides a valuable, high protein food source in Vietnam, Thailand, China and other countries. Their operculum is exported to foreign countries for medicines and perfumes, and their shells for the shell craft industry.
Tiger Nassarius Snail (Babylonia spirata)
The Tiger Nassarius Snail (Babylonia spirata) has a smooth, broad, ovoid white to yellowish colored shell with large orange to brown markings, with six regular spiral rows of whorls that have deep sutures with a sharp edge. They have a smooth columella with a large, posteriorly constricted ovate aperture and an operculum that they use to close their shell when stressed or disturbed by predators. They also have a large, elephant like proboscis that is used for breathing and smelling out prey and a very long, strong foot that they use to flip themselves over when upended.
Female Tiger Nassarius Snails are slightly larger and heavier than males. Males can be determined externally by the presence of a male organ on the right side of the head, just behind the right tentacle. Females possess a pedal gland on the ventral side of the foot, to shape and harden the egg capsule.
A single large Babylon spirata requires a well established FOWLR or reef tank of at least 20 gallon capacity with live rock and a silt or fine sandy substrate deep enough for them to burrow into. These hardy snails make an excellent cleanup crew for eating detritus, decaying organics, fish waste and leftover meaty foods like Mysis shrimp in the aquarium. Generally, 1 or 2 snails are recommended per 5 gallons to keep the aquarium substrate clean and aerated.
Except for Tridachnea clams, Leopard nassarius snails are completely reef safe and will not pester corals or inverts however, if you have too many snails or there are not enough leftovers and naturally occurring foods in the system, they may attack other snails. Because they are large snails, they have a tendency to bulldoze under the substrate while feeding and could rearrange unsecured corals in a reef tank.
The Tiger Nassarius Snail is not an aggressive species and is compatible with most tankmates including full grown Fighting Conch Snails, Cerith snails, Astrea Snails, Mexican turbo snails, Trochus snails, etc. and shrimp like Sexy shrimp, Red Fire shrimp (Lysmata debelius), Peppermint shrimp (Lysmata wurdemanni) or Skunk Cleaner (Lysmata amboinensis).
Avoid keeping them with aggressive species like large aggressive fish, the Coral Banded shrimp, most crab species, and all hermit crabs including the Halloween Hermit Crab, Blue Leg Hermit Crab, etc. which will try to kill them for their shell.
The primarily nocturnal Tiger Nassarius Snail will usually bury themselves in the substrate with only the proboscis showing during the day unless they smell any dead organic matter. They will then quickly emerge from the substrate to feed.
Although they are carnivores, they are not active predators and prefer to feed on dead animal matter.
Water temperature is the most important factor when keeping Tiger Nassarius Snails. They prefer a warmer water temperature between 79 to 86°F which affects their growth rate, survival rate, hatch rate, incubation period, larval feeding behavior, larval growth, etc. This species does not tolerate temperatures that are either too low or too hot.
The Tiger Nassarius Snail has been bred in captivity but it is extremely difficult, the main problem is the survivability of the larvae due to its specific diet requirements.
Babylonia spirata is gonochoristic with internal fertilization. Spawning can occur during daylight or night time hours. Throughout the spawning period, the females do not eat, even when food is placed near them.
The mating process begins when a mature female positions herself to the right side of the male and mounts the male. Mating continues for 2 to 3 hours during which time the pair remain immobile. After mating the male moves off leaving the female in an inactive stage for some time.
After fertilization is complete the female will deposit anywhere from 35 to 40 jelly like egg capsules to the substratum, with each capsule containing 350 to 800 eggs. The transparent egg capsules harden on contact with seawater and are held in an erect position until the larvae hatch out. It takes about 5 to 10 minutes for the female to release a single egg capsule.
About 7 to 8 days after spawning, the eggs hatch out into phototaxis larvae or veligers which are light sensitive and immediately start swimming to the surface to start their planktonic phase. For the next 10 days, the veligers feed on phytoplankton until they become juveniles.
Metamorphosis occurs from veligers to juveniles when their shell length reaches 1.7 mm. After settling to the substrate, the planktonic life changes and they become carnivores.
Juvenile tank bred snails at the crawling stage can be fed baby brine shrimp for the first two weeks, followed by frozen adult brine shrimp, shrimp pellets, egg yolk, egg albumin, tubifex worms, rotifers, etc. After 4 to 5 weeks the baby snails are able to eat small pieces of fish. They grow at a fast rate and attain maximum size within 2 to 3 years.
In their natural habitat, Babylon spirata is a scavenging carnivore that feeds mainly on dead organic and decayed animal matter present in the substratum where they live.
In an established aquarium environment with a sufficiently deep silt or fine sand substrate they will eat detritus, leftover food, etc. however, if there is not enough leftovers or naturally occuring food in the tank they may attack other snails in the system.
Supplement their diet with meaty foods such as fresh or frozen brine or mysis shrimp, small pieces of fish and seafood, freeze dried larvae, meats of clam, mussels, oysters, and prawns, etc. Feeding two to three times a week is recommended.
The Tiger Nassarius Snail (Babylonia spirata) is imported from the Indo Pacific and is available to tropical fish keeping enthusiasts from a variety of online retailers at approximate purchase sizes: 1″ to 2” at prices from $17.99 to $ 24.99 or more.
Tiger Nassarius Snail (Babylonia spirata)
Minimum Tank Size: 20 gallons
Aquarium Type: Established Reef or FOWLR
Care Level: Easy
Temperament: Peaceful
Aquarium Hardiness: Hardy
Water Conditions: 79-86° F, dKH 8-12, pH 8.1-8.4, sg 1.021-1.025
Max. Size: 1.7 – 2.2″
Color Form: White, Yellowish, Orange, Brown,
Diet: Carnivore
Compatibility: Reef Compatible
Origin: Indo-West Pacific
Family: Babyloniidae
Lifespan: 4 – 5 years
Aquarist Experience Level: Intermediate
