Gastropods · Neritimorpha · Neritidae
Bleeding Tooth
Nerita peloronta
It has not yet been assessed against the IUCN criteria. See full glossary
A robust snail of the Caribbean intertidal that withstands hours out of the water on wave-battered rocks, rasping microscopic algae. It closes its shell with a calcareous operculum that lets it hold moisture through low tide.
Size
up to 4.5 cm
Diet
Herbivore
Feeds mainly on plants.
Social structure
Colony
Lives in large concentrations, often for breeding reasons.
Sighting difficulty
Unknown
Fun facts
- It owes its common name to the two reddish-orange patches around the white teeth of the aperture, which recall a bleeding tooth.
- It is called the bleeding tooth for the orange-red blotch surrounding the two white teeth on the inner lip of the aperture, an unmistakable feature.
- It lives in the splash zone, the highest and most exposed band of rock, where it is out of the water most of the time and only reached by spray.
- It seals the aperture with its calcareous operculum so as not to dry out during the hours of exposure to the sun.
- Its thick shell and strong grip are adaptations to constant wave action.
Life cycle & biology
- Habitat & environment
- Rocks of the splash zone and upper intertidal of the Caribbean
Sources consulted: Linneo (1758); Smithsonian Marine Station; Warmke y Abbott, Caribbean Seashells
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapRelated species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Bleeding Tooth — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Common Periwinkle
Littorina littorea
Common Oyster
Ostrea edulis
Blue Mussel
Mytilus edulis
Queen Parrotfish
Scarus vetula
Acorn Barnacle
Semibalanus balanoides
Red Abalone
Haliotis rufescens
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