Jeweled top snail
Calliostoma annulatum
- On view
- Kelp Forest
- Animal type
- Invertebrates
- Ecosystem
- Kelp forest
- Relatives
- Gem top snail, channeled top snail
- Diet
- Algae, hydroids, bryozoans
- Range
- Southeast Alaska to Baja California
- Size
- To 1 inch (2.5 cm)
Meet the jeweled top snail
This snail lives mid-stipe in the kelp. They share their high-rise home with other top snails above and below; channeled top snails live up in the kelp canopy, while blue top snails live close to the bottom. Each species knows their proper place, and if a snail gets knocked off, it climbs back up to its proper spot.
Conservation
Like an underwater rain forest, groves of giant kelp are home to fishes, snails, crabs, and hundreds of other species. The kelp provides sheltered habitat where animals can feed and breed.
Cool facts
- Snails graze on algae with their filelike tongues.
Up next in kelp forest
Animal
Kelp bass
Usually loners, kelp bass join together to prey on small schooling fishes.
Keep exploring
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Leopard shark
Leopard sharks live in shallow waters of bays and estuaries and occasionally patrol the kelp forest.