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Engina mendicaria

A small sea snail from the tropical Indo-Pacific, of the family Pisaniidae, that lives on rocky shores. 1 Its shell is just over 2 cm long. 2 Since 2001 it has also been recorded in the eastern Mediterranean, along the coast of Israel, having come through the Suez Canal. 1 3

Pisaniidae
Engina mendicaria

At a glance

Data from the scientific sources listed at the bottom.

Depth in the wild

2–4 m

0 m2 m4 m6 m8 m10 m

Size

up to 2.2 cm

012345

maximum shell length given by SeaLifeBase, based on a single find

Conservation

NEDDLCNTVUENCREWEX

IUCN Red List: not evaluated. According to SeaLifeBase, it is not assessed in the CITES and CMS lists either. 2 In the Israeli Mediterranean it is considered an introduced species. 1 3

Where it lives

Red SeaWestern Indian OceanEastern Indian OceanCentral Indo-PacificWestern PacificCentral PacificEastern PacificWestern AtlanticEastern AtlanticMediterranean

Tropical Indo-Pacific. 1 WoRMS records it in East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Natal), Madagascar, Mauritius, Aldabra and Chagos; 1 SeaLifeBase gives it in Iran, the Philippines, Palau and Indonesia. 2 In the Mediterranean it is an alien species: it was found in 2001 at Shikmona, in Israel, and arrived through the Suez Canal. 3

Life in the wild

Where it is found

The bottom of rocky shores in tropical waters. 1 2 SeaLifeBase gives a depth of 2-4 m. 2

What it eats

No study on the diet of this species was found. SeaLifeBase only notes that most snails of the old family Buccinidae, in which it used to be classified, are carnivores and scavengers. 2 A species of the same genus, Engina armillata, in Hong Kong eats mainly serpulid and spirorbid tube worms living under boulders. 4

Reproduction

It does not release eggs and sperm into open water and has no trochophore-type larval stage. 2 In the related species Engina armillata the eggs are laid in capsules. 4

In the aquarium

From the experience of the BallingMania community.

Community rating
Level in the tank
lowmediumhigh
Coral compatibility
lowmediumhigh
Aggression
lowmediumhigh
Care difficulty
lowmediumhigh
Original sheet

Engina mendicaria is a sea snail native to the tropical and subtropical waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

This snail lives mainly on rocky or sandy bottoms. It is an excellent ally in fighting tube worms.

The shell of this mollusc is conical and its colour ranges from white to light brown; the body is white or beige, with eye and sensory tentacles on the head.

To keep this snail properly, an aquarium of at least 20-30 litres with a sandy or rocky substrate is needed.

The temperature in the tank must be in the range 22 / 26°C.

To feed, this snail prefers seaweeds and small molluscs.

Keeping it with small molluscs and snails of other species, which it might prey on, is not recommended.

Species sheet by Luca Infantino

Did you know?

Linnaeus described it in 1758 under the name Voluta mendicaria; it was later also placed in the genera Columbella and Pusiostoma. 1
In Engina armillata the amount of worms eaten each day is low, between 1.2 and 6.5% of the snail's dry weight: the authors explain this by prey that are easy to reach and do not need drilling. 4

Sources

  1. MolluscaBase, via WoRMS (2026). Engina mendicaria (Linnaeus, 1758). World Register of Marine Species.
  2. Palomares M.L.D., Pauly D. (eds.) (2026). Engina mendicaria, Bumble bee snail. SeaLifeBase.
  3. Galil B.S. (2007). Seeing Red: Alien species along the Mediterranean coast of Israel. Aquatic Invasions 2(4): 281-312.
  4. Tan K.S., Morton B. (1998). The ecology of Engina armillata (Gastropoda: Buccinidae) in the Cape d'Aguilar Marine Reserve, Hong Kong, with particular reference to its preferred prey (Polychaeta: Serpulidae). Journal of Zoology 244(3): 391-403.

Sources checked on 5 November 2026. Community texts and ratings are kept separate from the scientific data.

View the original sheet (Italian)All species