Attack of the water snails

**bhavbhuti** · 02-08-2011, 01:10 PM

Hi all

Nice title :)

I have a bowl (15-20 liters) with two guppies and a water plant in it if it matters. Since a few days a tiny water snail appeared and today they are up to 3 snails. Not a bother but curious how they turned up. The water is clear but old by 2 months.

Please advise of how snails can appear magically :)

Kind regards
Bhavbhuti

**Lady Hobbs** · 02-08-2011, 01:12 PM

Eggs were in the plant.

I will move to the snail forum.

**bhavbhuti** · 02-09-2011, 05:06 AM

Thanks Lady for clarifying the mystery (and moving the thread to here).

Now that they are here any problems to anticipate with the existing fishes or a couple more that I need to add?

Kind regards
Bhavbhuti

**Wild Turkey** · 02-09-2011, 05:14 AM

Basically they arent a problem unless they bother you personally.

They can be beneficial in your aquarium in many ways.

If you overfeed though, they will reproduce very quickly and kind of take over the tank. Again not really a problem, but perhaps not pleasing to the eye.

**~Col~** · 02-09-2011, 06:55 AM

You can reduce their numbers by feeding less and squashing any you see each day. That's what I do with mine. Doesn't get rid of them completely but does stop the tank from being overrun.

**Adrian** · 02-09-2011, 12:10 PM

Escargot anyone? LOL, sorry. Pond snails can be a nuisence, and can quickly over populate. Some people like them, and there are many varieties of snails out there. Ramshorn, are cool looking, with their swirl shape, and can get larger. MTS, or maylasian Trumpet Snails, are beneficial to planted tanks, as they help aerate the substrate, and for the most part, you never seen them until you turn the lights off. Another snail that actually ATTACKS snails, is called an Assassin snail, which hunts down pond snails.

Netrite snails are beneficial as they devour algae like crazy, yet they can not reproduce unless they have salt water. They come in different varieties as well, some look better than others.

Then you have your mystery snails, and they also love algae, and may nibble on some plant life, but not consume the plants.

With the bigger snails, if they die, like other things in the tank, they produce ammonia, and should be removed as soon as possible. It is easy to tell if a snail is dead, just pick it up and smell it. Trust me, you will know if it is dead or not. It is one of the worst smells you will ever smell.... <bleck>

Pond snails, as Lady Hobbs has stated, are hitch hikers. They come in on plants. It is always advisable to rinse and then do a light chemical dip on your plants, followed by another rinse before putting them in your tank. That will help get rid of the snails before they become a problem.

**skullduggery1** · 02-09-2011, 02:17 PM

The problem with certain snails,like the malaysian trumpet is that the young have very hard shells.They can crawl into an intake tube and break the impellers.

**bhavbhuti** · 02-10-2011, 05:05 AM

Thanks a lot all of you for your views. And till date I thoughts snails were just that, snails :)

Hopefully, these pond snails do not overpopulate, I am not of the opinion to squash them though, maybe I will start selling them LOL

Do the dead snail float up like say dead fishes as I am not interested going about smelling them for confirming their existence :) No? I guess not with their shells.

Kind regards
Bhavbhuti

**Dave66** · 02-10-2011, 05:12 AM

As long as you feed lightly, like just enough the guppies will be finished in a few seconds, the number of snails will be small; just enough of them to eat the bio film that forms inside the glass, and any organic debris. Think of them as free aquarium janitors.

Dave