Snail's Shells Turning White

[trianglekitty]

I've always had some pond snails in my tank. The population is well-controlled now that I switched to live plants (I guess because the plants help keep the water cleaner, so less waste for the snails to eat.)

I've noticed some of them have white shells now..I was wondering if that could indicate a problem with my water's mineral levels? I do have hard water...I just want to make sure this isn't something I need to worry about.

Also...I've always had the pond snails, but now I have 4 or 5 ramhorn snails. I haven't added any new plants or fish. Did they just spontaneously generate themselves or what?

 

[KittyKat]

Plants will not limit snail populations because if anything, dead plant leaves provide more food for the snails. Also, snails don't eat #105###, they eat fish food, algae, plants, etc, depending on the species of the snail.

What exactly do you mean by white? Do they have a white coating on the surface? Are growing white?

You probably brought the ramshorns in on something, it can take as long as a few months to notice them if only a single baby was brought in.

 

[Baccus]

Turning white could be a lack of calcium, the plants and ramshron snails will be using up the available calcium. Its not nice but have you tried squishing one of the white snails? Is the shell really soft and easy to squash? Also the acidity of the water may have changed with the live plants now being in the tank.

 

[trianglekitty]

Plants will not limit snail populations because if anything, dead plant leaves provide more food for the snails. Also, snails don't eat #105###, they eat fish food, algae, plants, etc, depending on the species of the snail.

What exactly do you mean by white? Do they have a white coating on the surface? Are growing white?

You probably brought the ramshorns in on something, it can take as long as a few months to notice them if only a single baby was brought in.

I can't decide if it's a coating or the shell itself. I tried scraping one with a fingernail and couldn't scrape it off. The shells don't feel soft though...they feel like a typical snail's shell.

The population definitely dropped off when I added the plants, but I haven't added anything new for about three months, which is why I was startled by the sudden appearance of ramhorn snails.

Also...it isn't all of the snails. There's maybe five that have a white appearance, and none of the ramhorns do.

 

[KittyKat]

Ah, the plants may have been dipped in a copper based snail killing solution, which would have come off the plants and into the tank itself if you had not rinsed them first, which would have caused a drop in snail numbers…

Do the white parts of the shells feel rough or smooth? Can you post a photo? Can you check your KH and GH?

 

[trianglekitty]

Ah, the plants may have been dipped in a copper based snail killing solution, which would have come off the plants and into the tank itself if you had not rinsed them first, which would have caused a drop in snail numbers…

Do the white parts of the shells feel rough or smooth? Can you post a photo? Can you check your KH and GH?

Really? Wow...I never considered that! Shouldn't the dealer have let me know if that were the case? What if I had snails I wanted to keep? I did dip them in tank water, but I can't remember if I rinsed them or not.

The white feels rough. I lost my test kit, but when I tested for GH initially it was as high as the test went (API master kit). My filter also have visible mineral build up.

 

[KittyKat]

If that's how the plants came in from the nurseries, the dealer may not even have known about it.. they really should have told you if they knew, but most don't.

Hmm, really? My API master kit doesn't contain an GH and KH test set, I had to buy that separately and neither one of mine has an upper limit.

If the shell feels rough, I would say that it's possibly white because it's degrading.. but if you have plenty of lime scale, this is very unlikely to be the case.

 

[trianglekitty]

If that's how the plants came in from the nurseries, the dealer may not even have known about it.. they really should have told you if they knew, but most don't.

Hmm, really? My API master kit doesn't contain an GH and KH test set, I had to buy that separately and neither one of mine has an upper limit.

If the shell feels rough, I would say that it's possibly white because it's degrading.. but if you have plenty of lime scale, this is very unlikely to be the case.

No, you're right...the master kit doesn't come with GH. I could have sworn I did test for it way back, but even looking at copies of the instructions I can see that I never did (since it's a totally different kind of test). I must be mixing it up with something else. I'll have to buy one and see, but I'm sure it will say I have hard water. If that is the case, is it something I need to worry about with rasboras, guppies,shrimp, and cories? So far they're all thriving.