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| shelled snails text index | photo index |
| Phylum Mollusca > Class Gastropoda > Family Strombidae |
| Gong-gong
or Pearl conch Strombus turturella (canarium) Family Strombidae updated Sep 12
Where seen? This delightful 'fat' little conch snail is often seen on many of our shores, on silty and sandy areas with good seagrass growths. Although large, these snails are hard to spot. The shell of a living Gong-gong is often obscured by encrusting plants and animals. Sometimes, the seaweeds growing on a Gong-gong shell becomes larger than the shell! It was previously known as Strombus canarium. Features: 6-7cm, elsewhere up to 10cm. Shell thick with large flared lip, inner portion of shell opening is pearly, sometimes gold. The flared portion is thick only in adults. Young snails may not have a flared portion of the shell, or if they do, this portion is much thinner than in an adult. Each eyestalk has a tentacle, the purpose of which is not known. The flared shell protects the long proboscis as the animal sweeps the bottom for titbits. Gong-gong may gather in groups to mate and lay eggs. Females are said to be larger than males. Human uses: Where common it is commercially harvested for food in many parts of Southeast Asia. In the Philippines, the shells are traditionally used by fishermen as sinkers for nets. Status and threats: Like other creatures of the intertidal zone, they are affected by human activities such as reclamation and pollution. Trampling by careless visitors and over-collection can also have an impact on local populations. |
 Kusu Island, Nov 04  Hopping along Tanah Merah, Dec 11 |
A
lively snail that hops instead of creeping along the surface.|
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 A young snail with a thin shell that hasn't fully developed a flared portion yet. Pasir Ris Park, Jul 08 |
 Highly extendable proboscis. Tanah Merah, Aug 09 |
 Mating and laying egg string. Tanah Merah, Apr 12 |
 Egg string. Tanah Merah, Jul 10 |
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Gong-gong
on Singapore shores
| Photos for free download from wildsingapore flickr |
more photos and video clips of gong-gong on Singapore shores
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Links
References
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Graham Brash, Singapore. 145 pp.|
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