Emerald Nerite
| Name: | Emerald Nerite |
| Scientific Name: | Smaragdia viridis |
| Family: | Nerites |
| Taxonomic: | Neritidae |
| ID Group: | Snails, Clams & Shells |
| Size: | up to 0.5 in. |
| Depth Range: | In shallow waters (0 – 15 ft.) |
| Sightings: | Seen sometimes |
The Emerald Nerite has a bright green, smooth shell with pale spots or short light bands. The shell can look shiny, and the opening area may be greenish white with tiny teeth along the edge. Its soft body parts are also green, and it has long, slender tentacles.
This small Snail is found in shallow seagrass beds, especially on Turtle Grass leaves. It feeds by scraping and eating the living seagrass leaf itself, not just the tiny algae on the leaf. This makes it an unusual snail, because many seagrass snails mainly eat the algae growing on plants, while this one can use Turtle Grass as real food.