Pest snails in the fry tank

[nik_n]

Hello.
So some pest snails got into my fry tank. I think I introduced them when I added floating plants. There is only about 2-4 in there, and the fry are in free swimming stage so I don't think that they will eat the young, the fry is just too fast.

I'm more worried about the waste produced by the snails. The fry are pooping because I can see them eating and I can see the poop which I syphon out every day or two. Will the snails eat the poop? I know that they eat what the fry don't but it's not like they can out compete the fry for food. Should I remove them or are they just extra help when it comes to cleaning.

 

[eatyourpeas]

Snails don't really eat poop. I would remove them just because it can throw the water parameters with their waste, unless you have plants and are worried about algae.

 

[nik_n]

I don't have any plants or algae so I guess I should just get rid of them?

 

[eatyourpeas]

I have never raised fry but suspect water quality is essential to their survival. You said you have floating plants?

 

[Slaphppy7]

I don't have any plants or algae so I guess I should just get rid of them?

Yes, get rid of them, while you only have a few...and before you have dozens...and there could still be eggs that haven't hatched yet

 

[eatyourpeas]

Agree with @Slaphppy7 and there could me more eggs in the floating plants, so keep an eye out for new ones and remove them.

 

[nik_n]

Ok will remove them as soon as I can

 

[castor]

Idk what fry you have but I breed bettas . Ram horns are about the only snails I’ll keep with them. I haven’t proven it yet . But your regular pond snails or bladder snails or MTS I believe will eat your fry if they are tiny enough

 

[Colin_T]

Even though I hate snails in tanks, having 4 snails in a fry tank is fine. The snails will eat leftover food and help keep the water cleaner.
The snails won't affect the baby fish if the fish are swimming.

Having plants in a fry tank gives the fry somewhere to hide and makes them feel more secure. Plants also get covered in microscopic organisms that the baby fish can pick at during the day.
Plants help keep the water cleaner.

 

[Slaphppy7]

Idk what fry you have but I breed snails . Ram horns are about the only snails I’ll keep with them. I haven’t proven it yet . But your regular pond snails or bladder snails or MTS I believe will eat your fry if they are tiny enough

Only if the fry are dead, snails are scavengers, not predators (with the exception of assassin snails), in a freshwater tank.

 

[castor]

I’ve seen MTS’s eat my little fry if they are on the bottom and they’ll squirm for a second then get sucked up . But again beta fry are one if not the smallest of all the egg hatching fish

 

[Slaphppy7]

I'd be willing to bet the fry was dead already, and what you saw was not squirming, but the actions of the snail's mouth producing movement of the carcass as it was consumed.

 

[castor]

Could be , but I still don’t allow them near fry . I lost most of that batch and it’s the only batch I’ve had trouble with losing more than half in two days . Stop having them in and only kept my ram snails and don’t lose more than ten percent now . You could be right , but I’m not risking it