How'd He Get In There?

[coyemuse]

I was out of town for 4 days, I come back, fish are all alive and well... but I have a small back snail looking thing in my tank now... where did it come from? Can it cause any harm to my tank?

 

[Ruskull]

Probably hitched a ride on one of your plants.....did you add any recently?

 

[coyemuse]

I added some plants like 3-4 weeks ago, but my fish have already eaten them all... I think I need to buy more

 

[Ruskull]

Rinse any new plants under semi hot water & rub them down lightly. Another cause/reason why these little invasive snails thrive is over feeding. Feed less food, spread the feedings out a bit more. All of us are guilty of this at one point or another I'm sure........

 

[coyemuse]

I feed my fishies once a day, and between the 10 fish I have, the food is gone within 60 seconds...

 

[thereverendturtle]

Probably a pond snail that came in on the plants. Won't harm your fish and depending on the fish you have, it may become a meal. Youre definitely not over feeding.

 

[OldMan47]

It may be a bit hard to believe, but that snail is finding food somewhere. If it is a typical pond snail, it can reproduce asexually in your tank and will lay eggs in a gelatinous mass on plants, tank glass or anywhere else it finds suitable.

 

[coyemuse]

Does that mean my tank will be over run?

 

[coyemuse]

And if they over run my tank, would the lfs take them?

 

[OldMan47]

It can indeed be overrun. The LFS is unlikely to want even more pest snails than they already have. Where that leaves you is trying to control the sail population explosion. Some of the accepted strategies include leaving a lettuce leaf in a tank and removing it a few hours later along with any snails that have used that lettuce leaf as food. Another approach is to limit the food to a tank severely so that any snails will starve. This has seldom resulted in a snail reduction but it makes people feel like they are doing something. Every method used to control snails also means a cut in the fish's diet. Even the most successful of them impacts your fish. It is something you must accept before starting any control method.

 

[coyemuse]

Can I not just remove the one I see?

 

[OldMan47]

Go ahead and crush the one that you see. The fish will happily eat it. Please do not expect that this is a one time event though.

 

[coyemuse]

So i looked again, and earlier when i saw the snail, i poked it a couple times, now I can't find it....

 

[CezzaXV]

Don't worry, he'll show himself soon enough. Pest snails are just that, pests, and of no use to the LFS. If you don't like them then just crush them - your fish will thank you for the tasty treat.

 

[gforce17]

I have a little 'crush' every time one comes within crushing distance of my finger. They aren't a massive problem.