Snail I.D.

[abrahamavelar]

Pond snails are good. They don't eat live plants and will eat algae.

cool i discover one a few weeks back and now i think theres atleas 7 small ones barely visible =)

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Those are great! I love mystery snails. I keep 5 types of snails spread through my different tanks and I am a big fan of all of them.

Thanks it's gotten big it was a little tiny thing when we got it.

 

[CatmanDru]

Yes my snail gets on plants..

Being on a plant is different from eating a plant. Often a snail is on a plant but simply traveling along it, or eating the biofilm on the plant's surface, or eating algea on the plant's surface, but not actually eating the plant itself. However, if a snail is on a plant and it's mouth is moving along a part of the plant and you can see the plant itself actually disappearing, then it's eating the plant.

If your snail actually eats plants, and especially if it eats plants frequently, then it is likely a Pomacea canaliculata.

A couple more photos would be needed to be sure, but your snail may be a type of Apple snail called a Pomacea canaliculata because:

1. the shaded bands on the shell from side to side.

2. the whorl/spiral looks like the whorl of a Pomacea canaliculata: it looks tapered, sloped and pointy as opposed to right-angle stepped or terraced like a Pomacea difusa (formerly known as Pomacea bridgesii). The whorl also looks like it might be indented.

If on the whorl ,the sutures or seams between the spirals look sunken, grooved or channeled, then the snail is a Pomacea canaliculata. The canaliculata is named for this feature: the 'canal' in 'canaliculat' means 'channel' and refers to this sunken groove.

If on the whorl ,the sutures or seams between the spirals are not sunken but instead form right or 90 degree angles, then it is a Pomacea difusa.

A close-up photo from the front but slightly to the spiral side and clearly showing the spiral would help identification, if you care.

Or, if the snail gets much larger than a golf ball, say raquetball size, then you will know it is a canaliculata. Canaliculatas get baseball or softball size, 4 , sometimes 5 inches.

Pomacea difusa (bridgesii) get golf/pingpong ball size, about 2 inches.

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Here is a couple more pics if these don't work let me know I will work on getting some more pics.

 

[CatmanDru]

Pomacea difusa!

Note the right angles on the steps of the whorl -- and the neatly stacked wedding cake tiers of the spiral.

Beautiful snail, by the way.

 

[GhillieSniper115]

I also wanna know what type of snail I have, I think it's an apple not to sure. We had two but my cichlids killed the other one, I kept them in diff tanks so I wouldn't have babies cuz they r a pain to try and get rid of lol.

Some snails can reproduce asexualy

 

[Mr.Albiman]

Some snails can reproduce asexualy

Some can like pond, bladder and ramshorn snails can but not Apple/Mystery Snails

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Thanks it is a pretty snail as far as that goes lol and can my snail reproduce asexual?

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Thank goodness! I don't want baby snails! Lol

 

[CatmanDru]

Posted by Chasnkevin4ever
"I also wanna know what type of snail I have, I think it's an apple not to sure. ... I kept them in diff tanks so I wouldn't have babies cuz they r a pain to try and get rid of lol."

Some snails can reproduce asexualy

You are correct, even if kept alone Pond (Physidae, the 3/4 inchers, not the 2 - 3 inch species,Lymnaeidae) snails can auto-inseminate. Ramshorn (planorbis) may, I don't remember, but I don't think so, mine haven't yet.

However, snails in the Apple snail family cannot reproduce by themselves in isolation. They are male and female and need one of each sex to reproduce.

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Good thank u everyone!

 

[CatmanDru]

Good thank u everyone!

I'm glad I could help a little.

 

[GhillieSniper115]

Posted by Chasnkevin4ever
"I also wanna know what type of snail I have, I think it's an apple not to sure. ... I kept them in diff tanks so I wouldn't have babies cuz they r a pain to try and get rid of lol."

You are correct, even if kept alone Pond (Physidae, the 3/4 inchers, not the 2 - 3 inch species,Lymnaeidae) snails can auto-inseminate. Ramshorn (planorbis) may, I don't remember, but I don't think so, mine haven't yet.

However, snails in the Apple snail family cannot reproduce by themselves in isolation. They are male and female and need one of each sex to reproduce.

I know that's y I said some snails. They can do asexual and sexual, it doesn't matter. I for one love my snails. However, after a couple generations the snails are smaller then their parents and I have no idea why. They still function properly and eat the algae on the sides of my tanks and the algae on the plants.

 

[Sarah E]

Beautiful snail! I have two Mystery snails, a Gold (which your snail looks almost exactly like, just a little more pale in the last picture than mine.) and a blue mystery snail.

Aren't they the most fascinating creatures?

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

I have had snails over breed in my tank before and I could not get rid of them!

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Beautiful snail! I have two Mystery snails, a Gold (which your snail looks almost exactly like, just a little more pale in the last picture than mine.) and a blue mystery snail.

Aren't they the most fascinating creatures?

Yeah when it's one! My snail is cool, it has orange spots on it's body is crazy pretty!

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Pomacea difusa!

Note the right angles on the steps of the whorl -- and the neatly stacked wedding cake tiers of the spiral.

Beautiful snail, by the way.

What do I feed it? I know it probably eats algae off the tank is there enough to feed it forever?

 

[CatmanDru]

What do I feed it? I know it probably eats algae off the tank is there enough to feed it forever?

Pomacea difusa/Mystery/Apple snails are omnivores so they eat animal-based food and vegetables and things grown from plants. They will eat some algae but that is not their preference. They like fish food floating on top of the water or on the bottom, betta food, fish food lying on the bottom, shrimp pellets, algae wafers, decaying fish food, dead and dying plant material, spinach. If you slightly soften the food by blanching, microwaving, or freezing, then they will eat zucchini and yellow squash, cucumber, carrots, green beans, and fresh leafy greens such as spinach, beet, Swiss chard, kale, and romaine lettuce. Iceberg lettuce doesn't have enough nutrients to sustain snails. When you put vegetables in the tank, use small amounts and remove them within 24 hours or they may become a gooey mess and may promote a bacterial bloom that will endanger your betta and snail and will also make the water stinky and cloudy.

This is just my observation and opinion, so it may be wrong, but if you have a light colored, including yellow, snail, don't feed it too much algae wafers that have food coloring in them (such as Tetra brand) or the food coloring will eventually become part of their shell, and show up as a very slight green tinge.

Also snails need a lot of calcium to make strong, healthy, thick, protective shells that won't crack, chip and break later and cause problems.

One thing that helps provide calcium is Cuttlebone sold for birds. Soak it 15 - 30 minutes in water (to 'waterlog' it) then wedge it under the gravel or secure it to the tank side. Then just leave it there and some calcium will disolve in the water and the snails may actually eat the soft bone. I buy them for $2 USD, so they shouldn't be expensive.

The other thing that helps provide calcium is feeding them small amounts of "dark leafy greens", yes, the same ones recommended to provide dietary calcium for humans: spinach, kale, dandelion greens, beet greens, turnip greens, Swiss chard, and collard greens. Broccoli is also high in calcium. So if you eat those foods, you could just take a tiny amount off your plate, rinse off any salt, and give it to the snail. But to avoid bacterial blooms, give very small amounts at a time, say the equivalent of one small leaf.

You can feed little bits of frozen spinach. You can also feed canned spinach if you give a quick rinse to remove the extra salt added in the canning process.


I hope that helps.