sciencefiction
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Ha, ha. I laughed out loud here 😀 Looks good 
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Snails!! Good or bad?
- Thread starter Looneeyy
- Start date
zozo
Member
Here Dito.. 🙂 I love snails if in controlled quantities ofcourse.. I guess it depends a bit on water parameters.. My water is relatively soft, it keeps snails a bit in check a lot of them do not reach adulthood and find a lot of empty baby snail shels in the substrate. For now i have collected the great pond snail - Lymnaea stagnalis, Bladder snail - Physa acuta, red ramshorn - Planorbarius corneus and the Red rimmed melania - Melanoides tuberculata. Wonderfull creatures..
The great pond snail eats algea like a vacuumcleaner i realy see green algae disappear from the leaves it's on. Remarkable to see how fast it cleanes a rather large leaf. Actualy they are pretty fast moving if they like. Beautifull marbled grey/white shell..
Red rimmed Melania lives mainly in the substrate, only come to the surface after lights out.. Oftenly i see them in the substrate on the glass cleaning and turning the substrate over. They help to prevent cyano and green algae buildup you often see at the glass in the substrate. also beautifull snail.
No pic yet..
I have emersed plantgrowth and driftwood Physa Acuta likes to move around in there as well. Beautifulle dark brown freckled shell.
Well who doesn't know the Ramshorn!? Simply beautifull.
Used to have Viviparus Viviparus in a planted fishbowl, but the last few years they are getting rare in the trade don't see them anymore in the pondshop. Realy would like a few again also a few of it's babies in the aquarium. Viviparus babies are awfully cute..
Just for fun this one too.. In the garden on the lookout on the carex in my pondfilter..😎
The great pond snail eats algea like a vacuumcleaner i realy see green algae disappear from the leaves it's on. Remarkable to see how fast it cleanes a rather large leaf. Actualy they are pretty fast moving if they like. Beautifull marbled grey/white shell..
Red rimmed Melania lives mainly in the substrate, only come to the surface after lights out.. Oftenly i see them in the substrate on the glass cleaning and turning the substrate over. They help to prevent cyano and green algae buildup you often see at the glass in the substrate. also beautifull snail.
No pic yet..
I have emersed plantgrowth and driftwood Physa Acuta likes to move around in there as well. Beautifulle dark brown freckled shell.
Well who doesn't know the Ramshorn!? Simply beautifull.
Used to have Viviparus Viviparus in a planted fishbowl, but the last few years they are getting rare in the trade don't see them anymore in the pondshop. Realy would like a few again also a few of it's babies in the aquarium. Viviparus babies are awfully cute..
Just for fun this one too.. In the garden on the lookout on the carex in my pondfilter..😎
three-fingers
Member
I've only seen these on eBay recently, used to get them for ponds at the LFS but I never kept them at home as they seemed to hate the tropical temperatures of the shop (even the "coldwater" tanks would be about 25*C, the whole shop was tropical lol).
I think of them as our native apple snails. I just had a look on eBay now though and there is only one single listing for these guys...it does seem they are getting less common.
I also saw "Chinese mystery snail" for sale though so I literally just ordered one, Bellamya chinensis I think, anyone heard of these before?
zozo
Member
As far as i know Pomacea are since 2012 no longer allowed to be imported and sold in Europe.. In european temperate climats for example spain they propagate in the wild and formed a pest for rise farmers. I believe they are afraid of them addapting to the colder climates in the rest of europe as well.
But i'm not sure i thought i still saw them lately in a tank in a lfs.. At least it look suspiciously simmular.. 🙂 Probably no import and nobody is controlling local bred populations..
three-fingers
Member
As far as I'm aware, there is no issue with selling apple snails in Europe, they just cant be imported into EU countries. I think it's somewhat of a grey area of legislation, there's loads of listings for apple snails on Ebay anyway!* I haven't seen them in shops in recent years though, so I suppose only UK bred ones are OK here. I wonder how the UK leaving the EU will affect the availability of apple snails (and other banned invert/plant species). Apple snails are great, they will eat many species of aquatic plant if there's nothing tastier though.
However, I only mentioned apple snails as I was likening them to Viviparus viviparus, this species looks very similar to Pomacea bridgesii but is actually native to the UK and other countries in Europe.
*Edit: I just looked now and cant see any apple snails on Ebay 🙁. I'm sure it was only a few months ago I had some in my watch list!
(and other banned invert/plant species). Apple snails are great, they will eat many species of aquatic plant if there's nothing tastier though.However, I only mentioned apple snails as I was likening them to Viviparus viviparus, this species looks very similar to Pomacea bridgesii but is actually native to the UK and other countries in Europe.
*Edit: I just looked now and cant see any apple snails on Ebay 🙁. I'm sure it was only a few months ago I had some in my watch list!
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At the last count 5 species of snail in my main planted tank - MTS, red ramshorn, bladder, orange tylomenia and those small, flat ramshorn like ones (anyone have any idea what they are?)
In combination with the 3 shrimp species, food doesn't last long...
In combination with the 3 shrimp species, food doesn't last long...
zozo
Member
They are and they are funny too.. They are the clowns in the aquarium.. I always had to laugh when thy where climbing up and over something and than fall off. Never saw them climb down again.. Always falling.. It looks a bit clumsy..
Appy says Hi..
three-fingers
Member
Lucky to still have one, making me miss my apple snails! 🙁 Being air-breathers, I always found it funny when they extended their siphon to the surface, then sort of "pumped" their head in and out of their shell to take in air .
I may set up a tank for them next month lol...I know where I can still get some golden ones and was planning on setting up a tank for some endler fry anyway.
I still keep the shell of the last apple snail I owned in a plant pot on my desk, got it as a wee 1cm baby about off ebay in 2007 I think and it lived for about 3 years.
The shell was a beautiful striped purple colour with bright orange spots on its body, the shell is old and faded now though:
Also, on the subject of Bellamya chinensis (the species I just ordered from eBay), and while we're sharing snail pictures, maybe I have actually had one of these hitch-hike on plants before, it was probably eaten by an assassin snail at the time. I just found these pics of a small unidentified snail that I took in 2009:
Anyone seen a snail like that before?
Do they have a sort of rim to the edge of the shell? If so, sounds like Planorbis planorbis.
I had these in my pond and bird water bowls in my old garden. I put some in my aquarium but they never bred, so I presumed they needed either hard or cold water to breed.
.I may set up a tank for them next month lol...I know where I can still get some golden ones and was planning on setting up a tank for some endler fry anyway.
I still keep the shell of the last apple snail I owned in a plant pot on my desk, got it as a wee 1cm baby about off ebay in 2007 I think and it lived for about 3 years.
The shell was a beautiful striped purple colour with bright orange spots on its body, the shell is old and faded now though:
Also, on the subject of Bellamya chinensis (the species I just ordered from eBay), and while we're sharing snail pictures, maybe I have actually had one of these hitch-hike on plants before, it was probably eaten by an assassin snail at the time. I just found these pics of a small unidentified snail that I took in 2009:
Anyone seen a snail like that before?
Do they have a sort of rim to the edge of the shell? If so, sounds like Planorbis planorbis.
I had these in my pond and bird water bowls in my old garden. I put some in my aquarium but they never bred, so I presumed they needed either hard or cold water to breed.
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zozo
Member
Hi all,
I occasionally get small <"Pond Snails"> (Lymnaea stagnalis) come in from the Daphnia buckets outside and I repatriate them.
I tried Assassin Snails (<"Clea helene">), but the water was too soft for them. I've never tried Nerites etc, as I know they need harder water.
cheers Darrel
I have <"Freshwater Limpets"> (Acroloxus lacustris), <"Red Ramshorn"> (Planorbis rubrum), <"MTS"> (Melanoides tuberculata) and <"Bladder Snail"> (Physella acuta). I deliberately got the MTS, all the rest of have arrived on their own with plants etc.
I occasionally get small <"Pond Snails"> (Lymnaea stagnalis) come in from the Daphnia buckets outside and I repatriate them.
I tried Assassin Snails (<"Clea helene">), but the water was too soft for them. I've never tried Nerites etc, as I know they need harder water.
cheers Darrel
LondonDragon
Member
Gotta love snails, I have them in all my tanks intentionally 🙂 buying some more this week!
Yo-han
Member
I'm not in the good or bad camp, but right in the middle. I don't like to see (too many of) them, but I don't mind having them. As said before, they eat dead plants, algae, left over food, detritus and all kind of waste. So in fact, they are useful! I did introduce MTS in my paludarium and black water tank to keep the sand aerated.
On the other hand, I hate seeing them in my aquascape tanks, just because they distract from the scape. The small Physella snails are in all of my tanks and as long as the previous mentioned food sources aren't available, they barely reproduce. So this way I don't mind the 10 snails in the tank. In almost all cases when people have a 'snail outbreak' they either have algae, dead plants or they feed too much (9 out of 10 times the last one). Reduce food and snails will be no problem!
On the other hand, I hate seeing them in my aquascape tanks, just because they distract from the scape. The small Physella snails are in all of my tanks and as long as the previous mentioned food sources aren't available, they barely reproduce. So this way I don't mind the 10 snails in the tank. In almost all cases when people have a 'snail outbreak' they either have algae, dead plants or they feed too much (9 out of 10 times the last one). Reduce food and snails will be no problem!
zozo
Member
I once had one, the spiky shell and it indeed lost all it's spikes in my soft water after a few months.. No idea actualy if co2 acidity is even worse for snails. I guess so because in my high tech i have almost non.. Occasionaly i see a little bladder snail but not to often the rest just disappears. Anyway the Nerite i wasn't realy sad about it when it was gone, they can produce a lot of eggs scattered all over the hardscape as tiny light colored specks, doesn't look so good on the driftwood. And they need salt water to reproduce so the eggs stay there latently for months to come. Even a toothbrush couldn't get them off, they use Nerite superglue. Had to use a needle like a tooth pic and remove them one by one. Not that i did there were far to many, but that was the only way.
mik778866
Seedling
Hi.
Are assassin snails also detritus eaters/decomposes?
How would you rate them.
sciencefiction
Member
- Joined
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In a way yes, only that they are more opportunistic carnivores rather than detritus eaters so they wouldn't be my choice in a tank with other small inverts.
I think they probably are planorbis - though they stay very small in this tank so very hard to make out any detail (tank is quite warm though so maybe not ideal for them if they're temperate). Might be a different species - there are loads listed on Wikipedia...
Thanks and regards, Mark
zozo
Member
Another one.. 
It took me a while to get a realy good look, because i already spotted it a few times. months ago, but it was still to small to say and always a bit hidden in a dark spot behind some leaves, it doesn't show often. At first i thought it was just a emersed wandering Physa Acuta. But today it showed up on top and i'm quite sure it aint a Physa Acuta. and it aint a Lymnaea.. 🙂
I pretty sure, 80%, it is a Amber Snail - Succinea putris Don't ask me how the heck it got up there, the only thing i did put there was some moss i took from my swamp bucket from the garden. So i guess it sneaked in with that as baby ot egg about a year ago. it seems to like it in there and not yet seen any plant damage it might still be living of some biofilm on the wood and mosses. Funny little girl/guy.. 🙂
It took me a while to get a realy good look, because i already spotted it a few times. months ago, but it was still to small to say and always a bit hidden in a dark spot behind some leaves, it doesn't show often. At first i thought it was just a emersed wandering Physa Acuta. But today it showed up on top and i'm quite sure it aint a Physa Acuta. and it aint a Lymnaea.. 🙂I pretty sure, 80%, it is a Amber Snail - Succinea putris Don't ask me how the heck it got up there, the only thing i did put there was some moss i took from my swamp bucket from the garden. So i guess it sneaked in with that as baby ot egg about a year ago. it seems to like it in there and not yet seen any plant damage it might still be living of some biofilm on the wood and mosses. Funny little girl/guy.. 🙂
Attachments
Hi all,
The other option is the "Wandering Pond Snail" <"(Radix balthica)"> they also have a very wide basal shell whorl and they arrive in all sorts of unlikely places, but yours looks more like Succinea.
cheers Darrel
Definitely looks like Succinea. They are quite common in the UK around muddy ponds etc.
The other option is the "Wandering Pond Snail" <"(Radix balthica)"> they also have a very wide basal shell whorl and they arrive in all sorts of unlikely places, but yours looks more like Succinea.
cheers Darrel
Hi all,
The problem in hard water, when you change the CO2 ~ HCO3 ~ pH equilibrium by adding CO2, is that the older shell whorls start to erode as soon as the pH is under pH7. When you stop adding CO2 the additional CaCO3 that was held in solution by the elevated level of CO2 will precipitate back out, but this doesn't help the snail because it can only build new shell at the mantle, and can't replace the older shell that has gone into solution when the CO2 levels were elevated.
There is a more complete discussion in <"Nerite snails in high tech.">
cheers Darrel
It doesn't really make any difference, if you have hard water normally the snail will be able to make new shell at the mantle, and the older shell whorls will remain intact. In soft water, with limited calcium and carbonates, only a very limited range of snails can persist, and they will grew very slowly.
The problem in hard water, when you change the CO2 ~ HCO3 ~ pH equilibrium by adding CO2, is that the older shell whorls start to erode as soon as the pH is under pH7. When you stop adding CO2 the additional CaCO3 that was held in solution by the elevated level of CO2 will precipitate back out, but this doesn't help the snail because it can only build new shell at the mantle, and can't replace the older shell that has gone into solution when the CO2 levels were elevated.
There is a more complete discussion in <"Nerite snails in high tech.">
cheers Darrel
