Question about Snail Eggs

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mstrpln03

AC Members
Nov 17, 2008
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New Jersey USA
So I am a newbie with snails. My Briggs have appeared to have layed 5 egg masses above the waterline. I figured the eggs would be layed underwater. Should I leave them be or put them in a container of water to hatch them?
 

psyche

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Jul 16, 2009
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They are laid above the water and so long as they are well attached and reasonable humid you can leave them. But a single clutch can hatch 60 snails, my last clutch hatched over 60 to full adulthood. How many do you need?
 

mstrpln03

AC Members
Nov 17, 2008
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New Jersey USA
Wow, There are 5 egg masses and I'm assuming they're the Purple Striped Briggs because I saw them mating. Is it common to have 5 masses and how long do they take to hatch? If they all hatch I guess I won't need 300 of them.
 

snoopy65

I am Sam aka Snoopy65
Aug 24, 2008
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Where the ducks walk on the fish, PA
Each clutch can hold between 50-200 snails. So you could have 1000+ snails. If you do not have plans for that many snails, I would remove the clutch/ clutches and freeze them prior to throwing them in the trash. That way there is no chance they can make it into the wild and cause problems. Depending on how warm and humid your tank is, it can take as little as 9 days and as many as 21. After 21 days, if they haven't hatched, I would freeze and discard.
 

mstrpln03

AC Members
Nov 17, 2008
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New Jersey USA
Thanks everyone, I have 4 tanks from 20 gallon to 125 gallon. I am going to try to hatch these out and spread them out between all the tanks. The tank they're in now is a 45 gallon.
 

Reframer

AC Members
Feb 22, 2009
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Minnesota
I would still only hatch 1 clutch at the most. They will be laying more so you will have to get used to Briggs birth control.
 

brittanyd0203

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Mar 30, 2009
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Vienna, WV
Briggs lay above the waterline and as long as it isn't too humid, which could cause them to fall into the water, or too dry, which would cause them to dry out, they should be fine. It isn't uncommon for a female to lay several clutches within a small time period. As some of the other members have already said, clutches can contain quite a few little snails so if you don't really have the resources to take care of possibly 500+ snails, freeze some of them. I can tell you from experience that letting 4+ clutches hatch at the same time really isn't a good idea since you can get overwhelmed rather quickly. I usually take my clutches and put them on a floating platform until they hatch. I'll include a picture of my hatchery so you can see what I'm talking about. The clutches on the platform were all laid by one female in about one week.

EDIT: A filter was added to this tank that evening. Definitely have a filter lol!

Snails 006.jpg
 
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