Apple and Ramshorn snails

[Guest]

I saw these huge snails at my LFS and im thinking i might want one. But i know clown loaches eat all the little snails that hitchike on plants, will they hurt the big snails if i get one? And are they ok at temps of 75-78? They had the snails in with Goldfish, so im guessing they are a colder water species. But they said Ramshore on one tank and Apple on the other. They were some in one tank about the size of my fist (apple) but they had smaller ones too, about wal nut size. So any input on if i could have one in my tank? I know they aren't that great for eating algae or anything, i just think they look cool.

Edit... are Ramshorns part of the Apple snail family? I was just looking up some info and thats what it said.

 

[mr86mister]

what i have heard though is that those snails eat live plants, some more than others and i have never had experience with those snails just the pesky pond snails

 

[Guest]

wow, if they eat plants then i definitely can't get them. I don't mind the pond snails, my clown loaches make a nice snack of them.

 

[Toirtis]

'Apple snails' covers a large number of species, including giant ramshorns. What you likely saw were giant ramshorns, Marisa cornuarietis, and the Giant 'Peruvian' apple snail, Pomacea maculata. The latter will eat plants and smaller fish.

 

[Guest]

wow, a snail will eat fish? LOL, thats afunny image. Im picturing "The Blob"

So im guessing its not a good idea to get one then????

 

[Toirtis]

I have seen them actively hunt fish, so yes.

You probably don't want them, but they do make a nice pond snail....and stunning, too...a particularly large (6") albino one scooped one of the jar show catergories here this spring....it was amazing..practically glowed in the dark and its antennae must have been 5" long each.

 

[piranha]

You'll find great info at this website: www.applesnail.net

 

[caribou]

I keep apple snails and ramshorn snails with clown loaches and haven't had a problem. My snails, however, are large (quarter size) and my loaches are 2". The loaches initially harassed the snails but the snails just closed their trap door and ignored them. The novelty has worn off for my loaches and they seldom bother the snails now unless one dies then they make a snack of the remains. My ramshorn snails just layed three clutches of eggs in the last two nights. I saved one clutch for a snail only tank but desposed of the rest. IMO snails are cool. I think the golden apple snails seem to be the most active during the day.

 

[Guest]

but do you have plants in your tank? I don't want a snail eating all my plants.

 

[krap101]

i think the way to tell between pomeceii and bridgessi is the bridgessi has a 90 degree angle on something. and the other thing is like 45? i read it somewhere lol.. not much help. but the bridgessi dont eat plants. lol but my pom can go through a head of lettuce in like... uhh 10 mins. like a head sized lettuce.

 

[krap101]

http://www.applesnail.net/content/species/pomacea_bridgesi.htm

oh right the end of the shell is pointier than the plant eating one. and i guess the pom thingy is actually the species... but yeah,

well i didnt know they had 5-6 whirls

 

[Kizayaen]

Hrm. I had a fairly large (over quarter diameter) apple snail and two clown loaches, hoping they'd leave it alone. They plagued it for a couple weeks and then one day I came home and there was nothing left but an empty shell.

Further inspection revealed a trapdoor laying eight or ten inches away.

I guess it's theoretically possible that it just died of boredom and then the loaches were quick to make a snack of the remains, but it seems awfully unlikely.

 

[unfamous]

the same happened with me i had a really huge black mystery snail and the clown loach that i had, one day ate it and left the shell completly empty