Start with 5 or 10 and build up.
"... True
Nassarius, such as
Nassarius vibex are commonly available from the
[COLOR=blue !important][COLOR=blue !important]Florida [COLOR=blue !important]Keys[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR]. True
Nassarius snails do not eat algae and they are not predatory; they are scavengers that eat only carrion and meaty detritus.
"The Super Tongan Nassarius Snail (
Nassarius distortus), for example, can reach a length of up to 1 inch, and is larger, easier to see, and very helpful in larger aquariums. Smaller Nassarius snails, such as
Nassarius vibex, are often around 1/2 inch in length, and are useful in smaller aquariums, refugiums, and aquariums with less sand surface area."
Beware of...
Ilyanassa obsoleta the synonym
Nassarius obsoletus is invalid and has been for decades.
This mudsnail is native to the western Atlantic from Nova Scotia to northern Florida.
They are sometimes sold as Onyx Nassarius - (Black Mud Snail, Black Nassarius Snail ) snails are very good at keeping sand beds completely clean of algae as well as other organics. They may occasionally strip a sand bed of enough nutrients that there will be none left to support copepod or amphipod populations. If you keep dragonets (e.g. Mandarins) that rely on healthy populations of copepods and amphipods do not get these.
They are also a cooler water species and may not last that long in higer temp tanks like reef tanks. These are the ones most often sold on eBay from sellers in the Carolinas
.