AAUUGGHH!! I don't understand snails.

OgreMkV

OgreMkV

Father of Earth's Next Emperor
Apr 26, 2007
964
0
0
53
Port Arthur, TX
ogremkv.wordpress.com
It seems like every website has different information about snails and what is appropriate for a reef tank.

Some say that the turbo snail is perfect, but others decry its destruction of aquascaping.

Same say that bumble bee snails are fantastic sand sifters and good for the tank. Others say that this critter will consume every beneficial organism in the sand.

Some never put olive cowries in a reef, some say they are great reef inhabitants.


I do not want to have any crabs in my tank. Reef safe snails are fine. Maybe an urchin in the far future. I like shrimp, but no crabs.

What are the best snails to get as a beginning cleanup crew for a 44g tank?
 
I am the same way.. no crabs.. I go with Nassarius snails for sand sifting (6), bumblebees (2-3), Astrea Snails (10), cerith snails (6), and cowries (6). This is for my 75G and they seem to do a good job.

I don't like turbo snails because of the reason you stated. I don't like urchins either.. tried one about a year ago and I am still picking out spines in the sand to this day. Plus they eat coraline algae. Shrimp are fine.. they just don't make it in my tank.. either have a fish that has a shrimp appetite or to much flow, but they are good critters if you can keep them.
 
OgreMkV said:
It seems like every website has different information about snails and what is appropriate for a reef tank.

Some say that the turbo snail is perfect, but others decry its destruction of aquascaping.

Same say that bumble bee snails are fantastic sand sifters and good for the tank. Others say that this critter will consume every beneficial organism in the sand.

Some never put olive cowries in a reef, some say they are great reef inhabitants.


I do not want to have any crabs in my tank. Reef safe snails are fine. Maybe an urchin in the far future. I like shrimp, but no crabs.

What are the best snails to get as a beginning cleanup crew for a 44g tank?
Click to expand...

It can definitely be confusing. The best thing to do for reliable information is to look up the animals themselves in scientific literature/studies, which often reveal their diets and habits. To summarize about the ones you have inquired about:

Cowries are completely harmless. I don't think there is any evidence to suggest that true cypraeids do harm to other inhabitants, unless they are algae, of course. I had a Cypraea annularis for ages that was a great little snail, and cool looking, as well. Most of the bad rap, I think, came from similar looking ovulid snails. On the other hand, if you are referring to olive snails (olivids), they predatory on sand infauna.

Turbo snails are, in and of themselves, great inhabitants and decent grazers. However, they are large and they are also subtropical, meaning they do poorly in tanks that are in the temperature range of our primary interests (i.e. for corals).

Bumblebee snails are carnivores, along with all buccinids (to my knowledge). Best to stay away from them if you actually want something beneficial.

As for recommendations, I usually advise a snail-rich crew, sans hermits (or very few of them, if you absolutely want them). The rest can be handled by worms and other included life in the tank. Snails I recommend (and others already have) are Astrea, Cypraea, Stomatella, Tecta, Trochus, Nassarius, Columbella, and Collonista. Those are all very good herbivorous snails, with some preferring filamentous and/or film types over macroalgae (pretty much everything except Cypraea and Nassarius [the latter of which is carnivorous]). Keep in mind that these snails like cropped filamentous algae, not long stringy algae--so keep it short for them to eat.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom