Are Snails Any Danger?

trickyspark · Feb 21, 2009

I'm sorry if this comes across as a bit stupid, but I'd rather ask and be laughed at.

I bought some duckweed and 2 short broad leafed plants that I forgot the name of about a month ago. I washed them in tap water first, then I washed them in a bucket of tank water I had sitting out from cleaning my tank.

I could have sworn I scrubbed the plants good, although the duckweed was a bit hard to scrub as it kept coming apart.

About 2 weeks later I noticed a snail about the size of the head of a thumbtack. Then the 3rd week I noticed a second snail about that size. Today I found 3 about the 1/4 that size.

I don't hate snails. I don't mind having them or not having them. I have pleco's and cory's to keep the glass algae free and the bottom pretty darn debris free.

I'm just wondering if the snails are possibly harmful to my fish? I found 2 in the breeding cage with my baby swordtails. After seeing the way a conch snail hunts it's food, it made me a little paranoid. The snails are solid black, although I did see one yellowish in color, but the same shape, in the gravel. It has since disappeared.

I had one in my other tank with my balloon mollies, but it has since disappeared too. I was wondering if maybe the mollies ate it. I did have one die shortly after the snail disappeared, thought maybe it couldn't digest the shell or something and died of obstruction.

minxfishy · Feb 22, 2009

They are probably either ramshorns or malaysian trumpets, ramshorns are cicular in shape, malaysian trumpets are long and thin, neither are harmful to fish, although they will eat the remains of dead fish if they are left long enough in the tank.

If you dont want them, remove those you can see, those you cant, place some lettuce in the tank overnight and you will be able to lift the lettuce out in the morning and there will be some on it, just crush them and dispose of them.

Otherwise leave them in and feed minimally so they dont multiple too much.

doresy · Feb 22, 2009

Add one of these guys and your snail problem will be over! (Zebra Loach)

Tolak · Feb 22, 2009

They are harmless to fish, and as doresy stated there are a few different loachs that will eat snails. I have a group of yoyo loachs I got a few months back, as I had transferred some fish that I was breeding outdoors indoors for the winter. I had some pond plants in there, as well as snails.

I knew the snails would get brought in with the fish, but they are harmless. Light feeding helps, I have a load of them in a tank that I'm breeding bristlenose in, light feeding is not an option. Every day I take some out, and put them in in the tank with the loachs.