TankBud

Bumble bee snail

Engina mendicaria

Also known as Striped Engina, Bumblebee Snail, Pusiostoma mendicaria, Columbella mendicaria

SaltwaterSnail

Bumble bee snail (Engina mendicaria)
JarroNevsbaru · CC BY-SA 4.0

Care at a glance

Temperature
75–81°F
24–27°C
pH
8.1–8.4
Adult size
0.8 in
2 cm
Minimum tank
11 gal
40 L
Temperament
Peaceful
Social behavior
Solitary
Swim level
Bottom
Diet
Carnivore
Difficulty
Beginner
Breeding
No record
Rarity
Common
Reef safe
Reef safe
Family
Pisaniidae
Origin
Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and East Africa across the Indian Ocean to Australia and the western Pacific

Overview

The bumble bee snail is a small, night-active scavenger for an established reef tank. It is an easy snail for a beginner.

Did you know

The bumble bee snail's banded shell mimics a bee or wasp, but the resemblance ends there. It hunts other small invertebrates by smell and has no interest in algae at all.

Caring for the bumble bee snail

A bumble bee snail needs meaty food to stay fed. An established tank with real detritus and microfauna suits it better than a freshly cycled one. Give it at least 11 gal (40 L), with plenty of live rock to hide in and a sand bed to forage over. Keep the water at 75 to 81°F (24 to 27°C) and a pH of 8.1 to 8.4.

It spends daylight hours out of sight and only comes out to hunt once the lights go down. At night it patrols rock and sand as a carnivorous scavenger, eating detritus, leftover meaty food and carrion. It is credited with picking off pest snails such as vermetids and pyramidellids along the way. If the tank runs lean, keep it fed with the odd sinking meaty food.

The bumble bee snail is peaceful and reef safe. In a very clean or understocked tank, it can go after small worms, bristleworms or other small snails when nothing else is available.

Good to know

Engina mendicaria is a small marine snail in the family Pisaniidae, a group of whelk-like carnivorous gastropods. Older references list it as Columbella mendicaria and Pusiostoma mendicaria, since its classification was revised over the years. Its common name comes from its yellow shell, banded in rows of small black beaded ridges.

In the wild

The bumble bee snail lives on shallow reef flats and rubble across the Indo-Pacific. Its range runs from the Red Sea and East Africa through the Indian Ocean to Australia and the western Pacific. By day it tucks into rock crevices and sand pockets.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The bumble bee snail is a peaceful, solitary species that keeps to the bottom. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.

Check the full mix in the stocking calculator

Common questions

What size tank does a bumble bee snail need?

A bumble bee snail needs at least 11 gal (40 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.

What temperature and pH does a bumble bee snail need?

A bumble bee snail is comfortable at 75–81°F (24–27°C) with a pH of 8.1–8.4.

What does a bumble bee snail eat?

A bumble bee snail is a carnivorous scavenger that eats detritus, leftover meaty food and carrion. It is credited with picking off pest snails, and it takes the odd sinking meaty food when the tank runs lean.

How big does a bumble bee snail get?

An adult bumble bee snail reaches about 0.8 in (2 cm).

Related species