Conch

Conch
An adult Queen Conch shell
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Superorder:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Sorbeoconcha
Suborder:	Hypsogastropoda
Infraorder:	Littorinimorpha
Superfamily:	Stromboidea
Family:	Strombidae
Genus:	Strombus
Species
Strombus gigas Strombus pugilis

A conch is a sea-dwelling mollusc. It is a marine gastropod. The ch at the end of 'conch' may be pronounced hard or soft.

Many other gastropods have common names with conch in them. They are however not true conches, in the family Strombidae. One such example is the Horse Conch (Pleuroploca gigantea). The genus Strombus is made up of the true conches.

While most Strombid species are extinct, at least 65 species still exist. Of these, most are in the Indo-Pacific Oceans while six are in the greater Caribbean region. Living true conch species include the Queen Conch, Lobatus gigas (formerly Strombus gigas) and the West Indian Fighting Conch (Strombus pugilis).

Many conch, such as the Queen Conch, are found among beds of sea grass in warm tropical waters.

Lobatus gigas is included in Appendix II of the UNEP's CITES list of endangered species and international trade is heavily restricted.[1]