Lifespan of pond snails

Hannys_Papa

Hannys_Papa

AC Members
Aug 31, 2005
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Upstate NY
I decided to post this here as i doubt many people with fish only tanks actually have pond snails.

Over the course of the last ??? 2-3 weeks it seems all my bigger pond snails (5-6mm) disappeared (i'd say there were about 15-20). I really like snails - as they do a great job of cleaning up the algae in the tank.
They also sit "upside down" in the floating riccia and get rid of the surface film.

So - how long lived are they ? A search didn't produce any results.
 
I would guess some sort of defeciency if they died at that size. I have pond snails that easily push 13 mm in length. It is very common for larger snails to die off when there is a shortage of almost anything in the tank. When I fist started adding calcium one of the intial effects was larger snails than I had ever had previously.

What the actual life span is I do not know.
Dave
 
May be something as simple as a food shortage, I'd be very cautiousincreasing food levels though. Depending on your purposes, try removeing smaller snails and leaving the larger ones and see if they continue to grow or if they still die off. If the rams are growing and not etching out, I'd say your calcium is adequate. Rams tend to show etching faster than my other snails due to their rapid growth rate (I guess).

BTW how are the rams doing? Are they red enough for your original plans?
Dave
 
Well... they could be a little redder. LOL
No seriously - i like them either way - they clean and are fun to watch and add diversity to the tank. I even got some more in my last plant shipment from beviking - he sent me some different colours (white/ blue, spotted) so we'll see what kind of variations i get once they breed. (i also got some MTS from him !!! :) )

I just really like snails now - they are so useful. Couldn't imagine ever having a tank without them again.
 
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