Chicomurex excelsus Houart, Moe & Chen, 2017
51.3mm

Chicomurex excelsus is rare in the Marshalls, at least at scuba depths. We have not seen a living specimen, but have found empty shells, nearly all with a hole drilled in the spire, in rubble piles at depths of about 61m on the seaward reef dropoff. It is probably not rare at the right depth and habitat. On one occasion, we found a pile of 17 empty shells, and on another dive, 7 empty shells in a single pile. It appears that something out there collects these shells, carries them to one spot, punches a small hole in the spire and eats out the animal. Although we have not caught anyone in the act, it is well known that some octopus will prey upon snails, drilling small holes in the shell and injecting a venom that paralyzes or kills the snail, allowing the octopus to pull it out the aperture. The first two photos below show several of the empty but still fresh shells found on one dive. The shells are variable in color.

Created 1 October 2010
Updated 17 July 2019

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