View Full Version : ramshorns come and go
Kuhlifan
08-20-2007, 2:59 PM
Growing up, we had ramshorn snails in our tanks, which would have population explosions, and then eventually die off to almost nothing, and then come back. A few years ago, the tank my wife has in her kindergarten class was overrun with snails, and then they very quickly died off. We've even restocked the tank (it's been snailless for about a year), but still have little to show for it. I did find one batch of eggs, which I haven't seen for a while, but I found those while bleaching off some dirty fake aquarium plants, so I doubt I'll see those hatching.
What exactly causes them to go back and forth so much? My tank at work has a nice big healthy ramshorn in it, and has had for months, but no eggs or reproduction, which is fine with me. However, my wife wants more in her tank at school to keep the sides and decoratons clean. Any idea as to what could help them get populating?
mellowvision
08-20-2007, 4:05 PM
food
pixl8r
08-20-2007, 5:30 PM
Yep, when there's an abundance of food, there are many snails. So, overfeeding leads to snail population explosions.
Mgamer20o0
08-21-2007, 2:25 AM
100% agree its food..... the less often you feed and the more you clean the tank the less snails you have.
Kuhlifan
08-21-2007, 11:00 AM
That's interesting, because we feed well, and they don't seem to reproduce any, at least they haven't for a year or so, even with adding new snails in. When they all died off, I looked up info on them online and it said that poor water conditions lead to die-offs. So it would seem that cleaner water would be beneficial.
I have LOADS of brown ramshorn snails that seem to be durable and prolific...how many do ya want :) like, free... man...
you pay shipping...pm me if interested.
Kuhlifan
08-22-2007, 10:31 AM
We just imported some more from my mom's aquarium. I have hopes that they will get freaky and start reproducing soon. It's just odd that it's been two years without a buildup.
pixl8r
08-22-2007, 4:23 PM
Do you use fertilizers or fish meds in your tank? If so, they may be killing off the snails.
Kuhlifan
08-23-2007, 10:37 AM
No ferts, but there was one instance of medication some time ago. I think it fell after the die-off, but it would have made things somewhat bad for the snail. Our paradise fish had some sort of worm poking out the side, so we got something, I think it was copper based, to take care of it. However, that's been over a year, so I'd think that would be all worked out of the tank by now.
nynikki
08-23-2007, 11:25 AM
I'm still a newbie here, but I'm wondering if you aren't seeing the reproduction because your tank may be over stocked. Are you referring to the 5g Hex you have listed? Just a thought, I know most fish in general will not reproduce if the conditions are not just right.
Kuhlifan
08-23-2007, 12:07 PM
Ah, it's actually a 10 gallon in my wife's classroom. It is a little tight on stocking, but tends to have overall good water quality. I'm hoping that the new snails I put in will take off, but was just wondering if anyone had experienced a big die-off cycle with snails in their aquariums before.
OhNo123
08-23-2007, 12:11 PM
Copper kills all inverts and is absorbed by the silicone in the tank and then slowly leaching out, killing all the inverts again. You might want to reseal the silicone or replace the tank if you ever want any invertebrates back into your wife's tank.
Kuhlifan
08-23-2007, 12:44 PM
Well, that explains why they haven't come back. Any ideas on why they die-off in the first place?
OhNo123
08-23-2007, 1:10 PM
they could have died of age or lack of food to have an population outbreak. The medication killed them for good afterwards.