Nerite Snail Questions

kell · Post by **kell** » Mon May 21, 2012 9:44 pm

I started my tank with plants but no fish or inverts. About 4 weeks later I added oto's and nerite snails to help with algae issues. When the first batch of miniature snails started showing up I assumed they came from the plants. I squashed/killed a dozen or two over the course of a few weeks and that seemed to be the end of the unwanted snail invasion. My family was horrified by the warfare on the snails since they assumed that the babies were the offspring of the nerite snails. Pretty much everything I've read over at the Planted Tank Forum indicates that nerite snails only successfully breed in brackish water, so the family members were duly mollified.

A few more weeks go by and more snails start showing up. I've seen the nerite eggs attached to the driftwood in the tank (small, whitish sesame seed shaped). So I extract a few of these miniature snails from the tank and look at them through a cheap plastic magnifying glass. Frankly they look like miniature nerite snails. I had one of my eagle-eyed kids look too; he claimed the baby snail had stripes like the grown snails. So now I'm questioning the brackish water explanation. Could my nerites be breeding?

Another question: I've been feeding the nerites and the oto's blanched zucchini every few days. Only one of the nerites reliably eats the zucchini. After last weekend's major tank clean-up, the algae is pretty much undetectable to me. I've tried Hikari algae wafers in the past and neither the oto's nor the snails have shown an interest. Are there other household foods besides zucchini that the nerites will reliably eat?

Thanks!

ryc120 · Post by **ryc120** » Mon May 21, 2012 10:11 pm

I have three nerites in my tank, and they like to lay eggs all over the back of my driftwood. Everything I have read says the same thing. They cannot hatch unless they are in brackish water.
Are you sure they are not miniature ramshorn snails? They look like this

Those little guys breed like crazy. The only way to get rid of them is to cut down on feedings, and keep squishing.

150EH · Post by **150EH** » Mon May 21, 2012 10:38 pm

I'd agree that they are not Nerites, do you have a photo? But only feed small amounts and only what your fish can consume in 3 minutes, as for any special needs feeder on leave the zucchini in the tank for and hour and start skipping regular feedings one day a week and only feed veggies once a week. You should see a drastic reduction in your pest snails.

kell · Post by **kell** » Tue May 22, 2012 8:51 pm

No photo at the moment. Next time I grab one I'll try for a picture.

kell · Post by **kell** » Thu May 24, 2012 8:59 pm

OK, here's a picture of an unwanted snail I found. Doing some searching and comparison of pictures on the web, I'm thinking this is a pond snail. It's two or three times the size of the one my kids examined a week ago, so it's a little easier to make a determination.

Aaron · Post by **Aaron** » Thu May 24, 2012 9:24 pm

Yup, pond snail. They're a typical "contamination" in plants you get from other hobbyists and stores. They're pretty harmless, but they can get out of control. If you don't keep shrimp a couple of loaches will make quick work of them and will leave the nerites alone. Dwarf puffer fish are also a fun way to remove them.

eleontie · Post by **eleontie** » Thu May 24, 2012 9:27 pm

aahh. Just enjoy them !

kell · Post by **kell** » Thu May 24, 2012 9:52 pm

Thanks for the confirmation! I'm thinking about shrimp. I'm not sure that my water parameters would be satisfactory for shrimp (yet).

Any suggestions for what to feed my nerites besides zucchini?

Aaron · Post by **Aaron** » Thu May 24, 2012 10:41 pm

Algae wafers, algae already present in your tank.

You might cut down on feeding frequency to keep the pond snails in check too.

150EH · Post by **150EH** » Thu May 24, 2012 10:50 pm

Aaron wrote: algae already present in your tank.

You might cut down on feeding frequency to keep the pond snails in check too.

I'd agree here!!!