Conomurex luhuanus, Strawberry conch, Tiger conch
Conomurex luhuanus, common name Strawberry conch or Tiger conch, is a species of medium-sized sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. C. luhuanus is found in sandy habitat among corals in the Indopacific region. They feed on algae or detritus, move with a modified foot, and have complex eyes compared to other gastropods.
The shell of C. luhuanus ranges from a more common length of 5 cm, to a maximum length of 8 cm.
C. luhuanus is often mistaken for a cone snail, mainly because of the conoidal outline of its shell, which is relatively unusual among the Strombidae. Its stromboid notch, though not as conspicuous as observed in many species that used to belong to Strombus (such as Lentigo lentiginosus ), is deep and easily distinguished. The interior may be slightly lirate.
The external color of the shell can be either white with an orange, brown/tan pattern of blotches, or completely brown/white. The interior is usually colored strong orange, red or pink, and the inner lip border is black or chocolate brown.
C. luhuanus dwells in sandy substrate in tropical habitats, such as the Great Barrier Reef and southern Papua New Guinea. They often form colonies that move together over long periods of time. Two types of colonies have been described: colonies of juveniles that are made up of conch of the same size-class, and colonies of mixed age-classes that contain individual conch of a spectrum of ages, although within the colony separation based on age still persists. C. luhuanus are herbivores or feed on detritus. They use their proboscis to pick up sand which they may then swallow or eat algae from. Strombus also have sensory tentacles at the end of their eyestalks which may play a role in chemically sensing the presence of nearby food. The sensory tentacles may also be important in detecting predators, such as carnivorous snails. Unlike many snails that move by slowly creeping along their terrain, members of the Strombus family move with an awkward leaping motion as they thrust off the sea floor with their modified foot. This leaping motion is also used to quickly escape from predators.
