snails

[angelfish123]

hi everyone,

im asking 4 my mum she has a problem she has snails. they r like a sea shell twisted cone shape, could you tell me what they are and are they bad for the tank if so how does she get rid of them, they are everywhere,

dont know how they have even got here no living plants,

thanks 4 any advice,

kim

 

[emma12321]

Hi angelfish123,

If the snails are shaped like a unicorns horn they are malaysian trumpet snails. These are good to have in the tank as they mainly stay in the substrate and areate it preventing pockets of gas from building up. They stay under an inch in size and don't eat plants. If you have a population explosion it is most likely to be caused by over feeding.

Oh by the way these snails are in demand. They go for quite a price on ebay, I wouldn't mind getting a few myself. (i only have one at the minute and you need to have both sexes to breed).

Hope this helps

Emma

 

[SarahBravo]

Don't know where they could have come from. But if they are very long cone-shaped (I think SirM describes it as like an icecream cone) then they are Malaysian trumpet snails (MTS) and they are good for your tank. They eat left over food bits and they dig in your substrate and keep it aerated. Either keep them, or if you're in the UK fish them out, put them in a little box with some water and send them to me - I'll buy 'em off you!

If they are ramshorn or common pond snails they can eat your plants, up to you whether you leave them or hook 'em out and bin them.

MTS

Ramshorn

Pond snail

Sarah

 

[angelfish123]

Thanks alot emma i was really surprized what you wrote and said i thought they were just a pain, checked on ebay they are 7.35 to buy,
wonder how they got there,

thanks again

kim

 

[angelfish123]

Thanks sarah i think they are the maylaysian cone snail just think of all the snails my mum has had

kim

 

[emma12321]

I got mine when i bought some shrimp, you know when the people catching the fish sometimes scoop up some gravel at the same time. I knew they were harmless so put it in the tank.

If your mum has ever bought bog wood from a tank at the lfs thats another possibility, a always seem to get loads of pond snails attached when I buy some. The clown loaches eat these though.

Emma