Who Knew *shrugs*

[zeon]

I went to buy a mystery snail today and I got so flabbergasted I gave up and did not buy one. I mean, Blue, Black, Gold, Pearl! It is just a snail. rofl

So this got me to thinking. (someone turn on a fan smoke is filling the room)

What should you look for in a healthy snail. I mean There should be things to look for such as their shell, how big they are. That sort of thing. I assume the smaller the snail the younger they are. A healthy shell, no light spots that look like they are degrading and such. But What would you snail keepers with advice to give say to look for when buying one or two or three? :c3:

[Dave66]

I went to buy a mystery snail today and I got so flabbergasted I gave up and did not buy one. I mean, Blue, Black, Gold, Pearl! It is just a snail. rofl

So this got me to thinking. (someone turn on a fan smoke is filling the room)

What should you look for in a healthy snail. I mean There should be things to look for such as their shell, how big they are. That sort of thing. I assume the smaller the snail the younger they are. A healthy shell, no light spots that look like they are degrading and such. But What would you snail keepers with advice to give say to look for when buying one or two or three? :c3:

Zeon,
If they are actively gliding over the substrate and/or glass they are healthy. If they are just sitting there closed up they aren't. And those snails will eat your plants unless you keep them well fed.

Dave

[Tolley]

I think any snail 2 or 3 won't be for long. maybe month later 200 or 300 lol.

[zeon]

I think any snail 2 or 3 won't be for long. maybe month later 200 or 300 lol.

I was told that the mystery snails needed male and female to reproduce. Correct me if I am wrong. ;) But going on that advice, I was only going to put one per tank. Just a little help on the cleaning crew if you know what I mean. And keep an eye out for any eggs above the water line.

[spudbuds]

Yep, I think you are correct that they need a male and female to reproduce. You can find more info about them on http://www.applesnail.net

[Tolley]

yup thats why i said '2 or 3' not 1 lol.

One per tank sounds good :19:

[CAX474]

Mystery snails are good for Alge but watch out for your plants, Trumpet snails are the best snail as they dont eat plants at all and they clean and airate the gravel, they also are good for your plants as they clean the plants root system and keep them healthy. But they breed alot and you only need one as you will soon have alot of them so you need to cull them often. Another good snail is a Rams horn they are good as well.:c5:

[nanaglen2001]

What to look for when you want to buy some Mystery snails? They should be active, not laying arround half closed. The "house" should be without dents or spots. I would go for a medium sized snail, lets say 1,5 to 2 cm in diameter.

Why not take three or more (depending on the tank size, one snail needs about 25 liters water). And if you take different colors its always interesting how the youngsters look like.

I used to have dark purple ones, white and blue ones, even some brown snails. And the baby snails turned out to yellow:c4: :c4:

If you dont want to have little snails, just get rid off the eggs. You dont need to search a lot. Mostly they are in the hood of a tank.

Ah by the way, soft water isnt healthy for them, they really need hard water, to build up a healthy "house".

[Adrian]

:c7: Now there's the great mystery about mystery snails. I have 2 golden mystery snails in my planted tank. They never once have eaten a plant, but they do get rid of dead plant material. Yes, you need two to breed them, however, you also have to give them space enwhich to breed. They need at least 2 inches above the water line to lay their eggs. Usually a large pinkish mass that can easily be removed if you don't want any more. I have seen my snails eat the algae off of my plants, but leave the plant alone. Some of the "mystery" snails do in fact eat plants, but as fas as I know, the gold ones do not. No, these aren't the apple snails either, as I don't want golden softball size snails in my aquarium.

Happy hunting.

Sincerely,

Adrian