Scientific Name: Cyphoma gibbosum

Description: The flamingo tongue is a gastropod mollusk. It is renowned for its strikingly beautiful appearance, which features vibrant colors and intricate patterns. The shell of the flamingo tongue is relatively small, typically measuring less than an inch in length. Its shell is primarily white or pale yellow, and appears to be adorned with bold black markings arranged in spiral patterns reminiscent of flames or tongues. However, the vibrant colors and patterns of the flamingo tongue are not actually part of the shell itself but are instead caused by the living mantle tissue covering the shell. When active, the mantle tissue extends beyond the shell, creating the illusion of colorful patterns and designs. If disturbed by a diver, the mantle is withdrawn into the shell, leaving only the plain hard shell exposed.

Habitat: The flamingo tongue is commonly found in shallow coral reef environments throughout the tropical and subtropical waters of the Western Atlantic Ocean, ranging from Florida and the Caribbean Sea to Brazil. It inhabits coral reefs, rocky outcrops, and other marine habitats with abundant coral cover, where it feeds primarily on soft corals. The flamingo tongue is often encountered on the undersides of coral branches, where it grazes on the soft tissue of its coral prey using a specialized rasp-like radula.

Behavior: he flamingo tongue undergoes a complex life cycle, starting as free-swimming larvae that settle on coral reefs and undergo metamorphosis into juvenile snails. As they grow, flamingo tongues continue to produce colorful mantle tissue, which gradually covers their shells.