Snails, snails, snails

[JMe2]

We recently had a pond snail invasion in our tank. I cleaned everything and set up a new tank (we're small scale, just a Beta and a Mystery Snail). I had my Beta in the new tank and the Mystery snail still in the old tank when she decided to drop a clutch of eggs...problem #2. My main issue is the teeny pond snails keep taking a ride on my Mystery snail, how do I ensure they're completely off of her before I introduce her to the new tank? I absolutely don't want to be bringing them with her. Then I need to carefully clean out the original tank to get rid of all the pond snails and Detritus worms so I have a completely fresh tank for the babies when they hopefully hatch. Any suggestions there?

 

[ADsnail]

Clean, clean, clean, or buy some new materials and start over if you're really concerned about getting all the hangers-on.

I hate to break it to your mystery snail (what's her name?), but she's about to get the massage of her life if you want to get rid of all her hitch-hikers. Scoop her up in a cup of her tank water and gently clean off the whole shell and lip and foot. She'll be slammed inside so you won't be damaging any soft spots. Use a cotton swab to get into all the little curvatures. Lift her out and put her back in the tank. Just out of curiosity you may want to hold onto that cup of water for the rest of the day to see if there really was anyone who came off, and if they're moving around in there.

As far as her egg laying, mystery snails need a mate to reproduce, so did you have a second one and now you're down to one? If she's alone, no more eggs. If she was alone before/during the egg clutch, it's may be that you have a different type of snail.

 

[JMe2]

Thanks for your response. I took her (Goldie ) out and gave her a good massage. She seems right at home in the new tank. Im not sure the Beta was as happy about her return lol
I'm wondering if she had a mate before we got her. I've read they can hold onto their eggs for a while until they decide the time is right to drop them. The water line in that tank had recently gone down and she went right up to the dry glass and left them. Where they are was under water a few days prior. However it's been nearly a week and I'm not seeing any spots in them so I don't know that they're even viable.

 

[ADsnail]

This is weird, but you don't happen to be in the New Orleans area or have had her shipped to you from here, have you? About a month ago I gave my mystery snail Goldie to an aquarium store here. She was the mating-est snail I ever saw once El Blanco, her mate, came of age. I couldn't handle the constant clutches of eggs and the heavy eating-pooping cycle. I gave them both to the store and he promised to find a good home(s). He wouldn't necessarily have told the new owner her name; but how many gold mystery snails do you suppose are named Goldie? If he didn't separate them in the store I'm sure they continued tearin' it up until the moment she was sold.

I did some major cleaning of the tank and now I'm down to one magenta mystery. My Goldie was a GIANT, extremely healthy and active, racing around constantly and a major eater, especially of vegetables.

I have a betta too and he used to sail up to Goldie and nudge her with his nose, then turn around and swish her with his fins. It seemed like he was letting her know whose tank it was since she was somewhere new every time he looked. He's not so territorial with this pokey magenta. But he gets really irritated when she's inside his drive-through log cleaning the walls. That's okay, it's good to yank his chain every once in awhile

 

[JMe2]

Wow this is funny! No, I'm no where near there and didn't order her. But she is big too, about Silver Dollar size. She looked great until recently I've started noticing her shell isn't what it was. I've wondered of having the clutch does that to them? I only recently learned about giving them veggies. I gave her blanched spinach and carrot but she didn't seem interested in either. What did yours favor? The Betta boy does the same, but she can't fit in his cave anymore lol

 

[ADsnail]

That's how big mine was. Several clutches of eggs didn't change her shell, so I'm not sure...do you mean cracks in it, or discoloration, or peeling?

It was pretty funny to watch her chug along into spots where she used to fit, only to find that >bonk-bonk< she'd grown too big. Once she shoved her way into an arch and got stuck. I watched her figure it out for ten minutes, turning and feeling her way through it. Sort of like a car that's parked in and has to negotiate a 45-point maneuver to escape. Could her size, bonking into things, be causing marks on her shell?

I didn't have any luck with spinach or carrots either, but I hit a winner with zucchini slices. Everyone goes nuts for it (all snails, not the betta, he's totally addicted to his color pellets). Cucumber is a close second. Seems odd to blanch cucumber since we eat them uncooked, but I have to trust that the snails know what they like. Both float, so I skewer the slice on a fork and set it tongs-down to keep it directly where they'll find it easily. I have three nerites - the cleaning crew - and the magenta; at times I've seen everyone munching on one zucchini slice at the same time. They'll eat it until there's not a scrap left. I've read that vegetables should be left in for no more than 12 hours; some say 24 hrs. I've found that they're not interested until around the 24th hour, then they start in on it. As though it's not good until a bit of rotting has set in? Anyway, I guess we all have to figure out our own version of the rules based on that the tank population shows us.

I've also given them small flowerettes of broccoli, which they love, but it gets too messy. Some prefer the stem, some the little flowers. One the flowers are being chewed they start to dissolve and make a cloudy stinky mess. Sorry guys, no more broccoli for you.

 

[JMe2]

Hilarious. She got stuck on a new feature that wasn't in the previous tank so I removed it, now she's been inside the Betta cave all morning, hopefully not stuck again. He is NOT PLEASED. Her shell seems to be peeling.
Yea the carrot clouded the tank too. Ill definitely try the zucchini, more reason for me to have them on hand, yum!! Thanks for the fork tip!

 

[ADsnail]

Sounds like the shell issue may be growth related, especially if she's grown fast. One of mine had that peely thing and a more knowledgeable friend walked in and said "Wow, look at all those growth marks. Wasn't she half this size two weeks ago?". It eventually smoothed out but I can still see markings in the shell, sort of like rings in a tree.

They do have the ability to self-heal. A couple of mine sealed up cracks in their shells from falls and shipping. Some people put a cuttle bone in the tank for calcium. Zucchini contains calcium too, so maybe a slice each week and see how her shell looks in 2-3 weeks?

 

[JMe2]

I will do that, thanks!! Im excited to see her explore new foods.
You've had cluches before, after about a week, what should I be expecting? I wonder if these are viable but don't want to assume they're not if they are

 

[ADsnail]

I've had them in the tank but never for long. I didn't want 50-100 snails if they hatched, so I'd wait 24 hours for them to develop a little hard crust, then snap off the clutch to - sorry, this is gross - give it to a friend as a snack for his fish.

I know that they take 2-3 weeks, sometimes as long a 5 weeks depending on conditions, to hatch. They start getting bigger and lighter in color, and you can see the dots of snails inside. Most people make a breeding box and move the eggs into that. I think the main reason to remove them from the tank is that fish will eat them. I don't know if that's true of Bettas, however (mine steered clear of them). I haven't seen enough information about just leaving them in the tank with right conditions already in place (see below) to know if that works for hatching. It would certainly be the easiest thing to do.

The box is a whole deal: must have warmth and humidity, but don't drown them, etc. There is a lot of good information online about how to make one and try to hatch snails. There must be people on this site who have experience (if you're reading this, please chime in now). One fussy fish is about all the responsibility I can bear

 

[JMe2]

Great thanks. I've kept them in the original tank by themselves. Its just them and water now, I can't even turn the filter on bc then they'll be under water. Im not interested in keeping them, but more curious. I have a local fish shop that will buy them. I dont see any spots and its been over a week, I worry they dried out. Ill give it another week then deal with it if there isn't a change.
Thanks!