Snail in tank, eating Java Fern... Good/Bad?

[kherm89]

Hello!

I'm cycling my planted 29 gallon aquarium. It's my first one. It has two java ferns, one anubius, a few hornwort, and a few wisteria.

I noticed a little snail out of nowhere a day ago when I got home from the weekend. I went to catch him and he disappeared. Found him again today on the glass and captured the fugitive! A lot of leaf on one of my Java Ferns has been eaten and I'm pretty sure it wasn't like that before. Could it be this snail? If so, I assume I should get rid of him. I'm afraid of a population explosion, assuming he or an egg came with one of the plants I got from the store.

He's very small, maybe half a centimeter at this point. Quite speedy though. I put him in a mason jar with water from the tank and a little piece of hornwort, which he found his way onto. Covered the top and poked small holes for air.

Does anyone know what kind of snail this is? I've been considering an apple or mystery snail for the tank once it's set up, but I have a feeling that isn't what he is.

Thanks!

Kaitlyn

 

[kherm89]

Here he is.

 

[libertybelle]

probably a pond snail. Plenty of snails are great in an aquarium but I doubt that's the kind you want to go with. They reproduce and eat plants like nobodies business.

If you've seen one there are probably more unfortunately

 

[kherm89]

That's what I was afraid of. I'll be on the lookout! My friend's daughter is going to take it for a pet haha

 

[sinibotia]

If you've got the space dwarf chain loaches (ambastaia sidthimunki) may help control them! I throw pond snails in my planted tanks to feed my loaches and they eat them faster than they reproduce

 

[libertybelle]

what fish do you have in your tank? I got pond snails once when I had a betta in my community tank... I crushed a couple on the glass to 'teach' him that there was food inside and soon he was the tanks snail hunter. Or ... something in there learned because it's ben ages since I've seen a snail so I think they're all gone. I think even my tetras were picking at the baby snails.

Make sure you don't overfeed too. Extra food = extra snails!

 

[Fresh2o]

I have many pond snails in my planted tank and shrimp tank (full of moss) and not once have they caused damage to the plants. Yes, don't over feed.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[libertybelle]

I never had enough to notice any damage to my plants but I read that unlike other snails, pond snails actually would eat healthy tissue. Could also depend on the type of plant, or just be one of those pervasive myths

The biggest risk with having pond snails, of course, is that if you overfeed you get a boom in population and then if you cut back feeding they die off and cause an ammonia spike. If you're careful with feeding that's not a problem.

I didn't like them in my tank for predominantly aesthetic reasons, so I'm glad my fish took care of them for me! I don't mind snails and they're really great in planted tanks, but I didn't want ones that could reproduce quite so... efficiently. So I got nerites!

 

[kherm89]

If you've got the space dwarf chain loaches (ambastaia sidthimunki) may help control them! I throw pond snails in my planted tanks to feed my loaches and they eat them faster than they reproduce

I'm silent cycling my tank so no fish yet. I'm planning on getting African dwarf frogs which aren't compatible with loaches. Hopefully I'll get to them before it gets out of hand!

 

[kherm89]

what fish do you have in your tank? I got pond snails once when I had a betta in my community tank... I crushed a couple on the glass to 'teach' him that there was food inside and soon he was the tanks snail hunter. Or ... something in there learned because it's ben ages since I've seen a snail so I think they're all gone. I think even my tetras were picking at the baby snails.

Make sure you don't overfeed too. Extra food = extra snails!

No fish yet. Still silent cycling which should hopefully be done in a few days. So they shouldn't have much of a food source other than the plants they're destroying. I'm going to have to see what fish I can get compatible with ADFs that I can get to eat them.

 

[kherm89]

I never had enough to notice any damage to my plants but I read that unlike other snails, pond snails actually would eat healthy tissue. Could also depend on the type of plant, or just be one of those pervasive myths

The biggest risk with having pond snails, of course, is that if you overfeed you get a boom in population and then if you cut back feeding they die off and cause an ammonia spike. If you're careful with feeding that's not a problem.

I didn't like them in my tank for predominantly aesthetic reasons, so I'm glad my fish took care of them for me! I don't mind snails and they're really great in planted tanks, but I didn't want ones that could reproduce quite so... efficiently. So I got nerites!

Lucky they didn't go after the plants! My poor Java fern is not looking too hot. Mainly on the left side of the tank. And I just saw they've been eating my wisteria too. -.-

 

[libertybelle]

they definitely go more for dead/dying tissue before they go after living plants, so it could be that your plants are missing something that's causing them to die back and the snails are munching on the dying plant tissue.

If they are relatively new plants it is very common for the plants to die back significantly and then grow back stronger, so that could be what is happening