Snail Question

[Mr. Limpet]

Yes some do. The one we all have, I'm pretty sure, are briggs (Pomacea bridgesii), the kind that is popular in tropical aquariums due to their warm water requirements. They are native to South America. You'll often see them in shades of purple, ivory, pink, blue, gray, or black. Their body color is either ivory with pink freckles or gray/blue with orange freckles. These grow to the size of an apricot. There are other types of apple snails that can tolerate cold water and grow to the size of a grapefruit but those aren't commonly found and are really only suitable for ponds.

You mean that this one, that I have in my tank will get as big as a grapefruit?

EDIT: It's twice this size today (pic is a month old) .

 

[siva]

Well I'm really not an expert at identifying them but it looks like a common briggs to me..the kind you see at every lfs..shouldn't get much bigger than a grapefruit.
EDIT: haha I meant apricot!!

 

[siva]

But it is totally possible that you have a Pomacea canaliculata which yes...will get very big.

 

[siva]

Grapefruit may be an exaggeration. Baseball is probably more accurate for those.

 

[siva]

Mine fall and crack their shells all the time. What the heck is up with that?!

 

[siva]

I couldn't get a great photo but here's one of my beloved purple striped

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Well I'm really not an expert at identifying them but it looks like a common briggs to me..the kind you see at every lfs..shouldn't get much bigger than a grapefruit.
EDIT: haha I meant apricot!!

Gotcha lol.

It's called an Apple snail is what I was told.

Here a pic of it from the other night. It liked my new snail a lot .

 

[siva]

Yes they apple snails technically but in the trade they get referred to as mystery snails. Now that one is a gold briggs, I can tell for sure, so that one won't get too big.

 

[siva]

I did a little research and the Pomacea canaliculata is on some big invasive species list and is illeagal to own in the US without a permit that is very hard to get. So both of your snails are definitely briggs, the warm water snail that is apricot sized

 

[siva]

I swear though, that first pic does look like the pomacea canaliculata .

The best way to tell the difference is in the shape of the shell spiral. bridgesi have a pointed spiral that extends out from the shell, whereas canaliculata's spiral is almost flat with the side of the shell. There are other differences but the spiral is the most obvious. There is however another very critical difference....bridgesi do not eat plants typically, whereas canaliculata are voracious leaf eaters.

 

[siva]

Ok it looks pointed to me like all the rest so they are both briggs

 

[Mr. Limpet]

I swear though, that first pic does look like the pomacea canaliculata .

The best way to tell the difference is in the shape of the shell spiral. bridgesi have a pointed spiral that extends out from the shell, whereas canaliculata's spiral is almost flat with the side of the shell. There are other differences but the spiral is the most obvious. There is however another very critical difference....bridgesi do not eat plants typically, whereas canaliculata are voracious leaf eaters.

The shell spirals out. It climbs on plants, only I think it's going after algae or nutrients rather than actually eating the plants, but can't be certain.

It also likes to stick it's head into the filter intake of my AC50 from time to time and gets stuck lol. What's with that? I have to turn the filter off and wait for it to drop, which is a pain. The tank is in good shape so I don't think it's a water quality issue.

 

[siva]

LOL must be some tasty smellin' slime in there or something

 

[dkpate]

Here is a great site for all the species, 99% of them from the pet stores are the briggs.
www.applesnail.net

I have had my snail for about a year and a half, and she is golf ball size, pretty sure she is done growing.

I supplement her shell with cuttle bone buried in the substrate, and it helps A LOT. Where we moved from the water was hard and full of minerals, so I didn't have to supplement, but here there is hardly any minerals in the water so I use the cuttle.

 

[siva]

I wonder if my snails need that..maybe they'd stop breaking their shells. I wonder if it would be bad for any of my fish?

 

[Shadowraven]

I wonder if my snails need that..maybe they'd stop breaking their shells. I wonder if it would be bad for any of my fish?

From what I hear it shouldn't be a big issue if you like to try it. My first thought when you wrote that was that your water may need one to help your snails strengthen their shells.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

LOL must be some tasty smellin' slime in there or something

Nope just cleaned the pickup tube/case/media basket the day before, that's what I don't get. I'm just waiting for egg sacks now so I can move one back to my other tank. No more $1.99 snails for me lol.

Dkpate, nice website on snails .

 

[siva]

From what I hear it shouldn't be a big issue if you like to try it. My first thought when you wrote that was that your water may need one to help your snails strengthen their shells.

That's what I was thinking but I'm always nervous to add anything to my tanks

 

[siva]

Nope just cleaned the pickup tube/case/media basket the day before, that's what I don't get. I'm just waiting for egg sacks now so I can move one back to my other tank. No more $1.99 snails for me lol.

Dkpate, nice website on snails .

1.99 is cheap! I'm trying to get mine to reproduce as well. Do you know how to sex them?

 

[Bettababe1011]

1.99 is cheap! I'm trying to get mine to reproduce as well. Do you know how to sex them?

Look inside their shell. Look up applesnail.net for more info on that.