Pond Snails

bghill

bghill

AC Members
Jan 18, 2007
370
0
0
Vancouver, BC
I have recently started noticing what I believe to be pond snails in my tank. They must have come in on a new plant as eggs, as I would never have bought them on my own. The suspect plant was put in the tank about 8 weeks ago.
I have been removing them and collecting them in another container for a few weeeks thinking eventually I will remove them all. I have about 30 so far and no real signs of slowing down. Everyday I find 2 or 3 new ones and remove them.
My question's are
1) At what age do they start breeding? I think they are all juvenile but maybe not. It is posible I got an adult snail on the plant and not eggs as I first thought.
2) How do I get rid of them? I really don't want them in the tank.

My tank is a planted 29 gallon freshwater.
 
I am by no means an expert on this, but I believe there are several types of fish that would love to munch up your little snails. Maybe you can find out what will eat them and stick them in your tank.
 
i would suggest u just live with em. pond snails are active fun to watch snails, escpecailly when they do their surfing tricks and free falling act. ive also heard tht if u crush their shell u can just feed em to ur fish.....i just dont have the heart to feed em to my fish, although my betta has been seen snackin on the babies. plus now u have a free clean up crew

but if u really wanna get rid of em u can do the old lettuce(or wht ever veggie) trick. u put a piece of lettuce in the tank by morning the snails should be all over it, take it out and toss it, repeat it until the population under control. as far as breedin, i think they start really young, google pond snails im sure u will find some info.

just dont use any chems to try and kill em, and dont get a fish to get rid of em, especially if ur not ready to care for the fish long term.
 
Good idea's, thank you.
The last few days I have been just crushing them inside the tank and letting the fish pick at the remains. My Panda Cory's love them but I don't want to build up extra ammonia between water chages.
 
be careful crushin those shells, someone mentioned cuttin their finger and it gettin infected. use link some tongs or something, and don't leave the shell in the tank. if ur feedin em snails just cut back on reg food. i would feed snails just like its blood worms, as a a treat.
 
Once pond snails are in a tank, they are next to impossible to completely clear out.

Some people don't like them, but I intentionally introduce them into any new tank I set up as I think they look natural (and they don't eat plants unless the plants are decaying already). As long as you don't overfeed the fish, the snail population will remain small.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom