Do apple snails eat plants?

finsNfur

finsNfur

AC Members
May 29, 2008
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Specifically, purple apple snails? The only live plants I have in my aquariums are java moss. I am considering getting a few purple apple snails for my aquariums, and maybe just one for my small pond for the summer. (if he's big enough for my young koi to ignore) The pond does have several plants, I would not take too kindly to a snail eating my lilies. :headshake2:

Also, is it okay to put just one snail alone in an aquarium? I don't want him/her to get lonely, but if they grow to golf ball size, I wouldn't have a lot of room for several.
 
I'll have to assume the purple snails are Pomacea bridgesii, which won't eat your plants. They'll be quite alright by themselves.
 
They will not eat healthy plants but do need to be fed a calcium rich diet to ensure health. They do just fine alone.
 
they will only eat dead or decaying plants, and yes they do do fine on there own and wont over populate as they need both m and f to mate.
 
Thanks, everyone! I did read on another thread about some kind of food for snails, some kind of wafer? Would that be enough calcium?
 
If your water is hard enough, snails only need an occasional calcium supplement. It's easy to tell if the snails in your tank need more calcium. The new shell growth will look discolored, rough or flaky, and it's possible in extreme cases, that the shell will erode. That only happens when the water is more acidic (soft) and starts to dissolve the calcium sources, where ever they are.
 
msjinkzd said:
i feed veggies (green veggies typically) and calcium enriched homemade foods. What wafers are you referring to?
Click to expand...

Someone mentioned they fed their snails "algae wafers".
 
they will eat algae wafers, i often use them as filler as i have hundreds of the snails. But a calcium rich food is better as a staple diet.
 
Is there a specific name/brand of food I can buy that is calcium rich? Or does it have to be home-made?
 
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