Mystery snail eating plants

I'm confused as to why my mystery snails have started eating my plants. I haven't changed anything about the way I feed them. At first I thought it was my guppies, but I'm sitting here watching one of my mystery snails tear up my wisteria. It snacked on the zucchinI for about 2 minutes and then moved over and started devouring my plant.

What gives?

 

That's pretty weird. Mine eat the nutrients off of the plant, but they don't eat the plant itself.

 

They never used to. They used to devour the zucchini, which was great except for they weren't allowing the otos to have any. So, I moved them and now they've taken to eating my plants. At first I thought I was just imagning it, but then I started noticing huge chunks missing and then I started spotting them eating them down to the stem. I'm confused. I took some photos and I'll upload them in a minute.

 

Are you still feeding them zucchini? Maybe they got spoiled by fresh veggies, or "the salad bar" as we call it at our house.

 

Yes, I have been, but whereas it used to be almost completely gone come morning, now it looks like it's hardly been touched. In the picture above, my wisteria was just starting to become quite bushy and now it's nothing but twigs.

 

Is zucchinI all you offer them? If it is, they'll need more than just that. I give mine algae wafers, and a few different kinds of fresh veggies. Seems to keep them off my plants

 

I feed them algae wafers, shrimp pellets, zucchinI and romaine lettuce. I guess I somehow trained them to eat all the plants? Should I be offering other veggies besides those two?

 

I give zucchini, yellow squash, fresh, halved green beans, and New Life Spectrum algae wafers. Their tank is also over run with algae (I think its Cynobacteria [sp?]), that they also love.

 

I'll try some of those other veggies too. Are the NLS wafers much better than the omega ones? I'm going to be doing an order online soon and might add that to my list if they're significantly better than the others.

 

I don't know, Omega One algae wafers don't exist here They do contain garlic and do NOT have what ever the preservative is that Omega One has (exothyquin?). That preservative does all kinds of fun things to many animals. Its a large problem in the dog breeding world, actually.

 

I might consider getting the NLS then. I've been very pleased with all of their other foods but just didn't purchase the wafers because I already had some.

Thanks for the help everyone. Let's see if I can keep my planted tank "planted" and stop the uprooting and snacking.

 

I actually read in another thread, someone posted a long article written by one of the masterminds behind NLS. He said that the big stir with ethoxyquin all started because people misunderstood some information. He also said, like any substance (vitamins, for example) too much is always a bad thing. Overdosing on fat-soluble vitamins can lead to death, but they're necessary for life!

The article was actually really interesting, he claimed that if you feed nothing but NLS you should see changes in color within 10 days, and that he's fed his fish nothing but for years. Everyone touts a varied diet as the best kind, but his argument is that if you have all the beneficial substances from the varied sources in ONE pellet food, then there's no need to feed different pellets, flakes, frozen, etc.

I'll see if I can go find the article, in case anyone's interested.

 

This is interesting. Are you sure the leaves aren't brown before they start chomping on them? Also, could it be possible that the weight of the snail (those snails are pretty heavy) snaps off a leaf, the leaf starts decomposing, and then they eat it? I hope you can get your problem figured out!

 

I watched my snail crawl onto the wisteria and then put the whole green stem into his mouth and chow down until the leaves were gone. I was shocked. There are some leaves floating around from being knocked off, but this was a well established plant that was thriving until I moved my snails in here last week. I've added more veggies tonight in hopes to stop the carnage.

 

I actually read in another thread, someone posted a long article written by one of the masterminds behind NLS. He said that the big stir with ethoxyquin all started because people misunderstood some information. He also said, like any substance (vitamins, for example) too much is always a bad thing. Overdosing on fat-soluble vitamins can lead to death, but they're necessary for life!

The article was actually really interesting, he claimed that if you feed nothing but NLS you should see changes in color within 10 days, and that he's fed his fish nothing but for years. Everyone touts a varied diet as the best kind, but his argument is that if you have all the beneficial substances from the varied sources in ONE pellet food, then there's no need to feed different pellets, flakes, frozen, etc.

I'll see if I can go find the article, in case anyone's interested.

Ethoxiquin is naturally found in fat, I believe, but the amounts that are put into some brands of dog food is just crazy, and you wouldn't believe it. I don't even want to know, so that's why I haven't delved too deeply into it. Theres a big difference between what's naturally found in something, and what's naturally found in something, and then having more added to it. I'd love to see that article, though! PM it to me if you find it!

 

I have 2 mystery snails in my 60 L/15G aquarium. I always thought that they might be nibbling on my subwassertang, but I just saw one devouring a whole bit of it. I was going to rescape my tank and put some other live plants, like anubias and java fern but now I am scared... what should I do?!?!? I don't want to take them out but if I have to I will. Please help, I had a video of him eating it but it won't let me post it for some reason

 

HI there,
Mystery snails usually eat decaying plant matter but I don't think its that in this case.

What do you feed them?

 

There is a chance that you do not have a mystery snail but an apple snail.

How big are they?

It's been said that a mystery snail will starve to death in a planted tank because as said above they only eat decaying plant matter.

 

Well I feed them some algae wafers every once in a while
They are about the size of a golf ball

 

Well I feed them some algae wafers every once in a while
They are about the size of a golf ball

Hmm, that's probably why they are eating the plants. You should feed them daily so that they don't eat any of your plants.

Besides Algae Wafers, you could try feeding them greens like zucchinI or cucumber, they will surely like that'.

By the way, do you have a photo of your snails? I would love a photo.

 

Ok

Here is a screenshot from the video of one eating it

So if I feed these guys everyday with a slice of cucumber will they stop eating my plants?

 

Here is a screenshot from the video of one eating it

So if I feed these guys everyday with a slice of cucumber will they stop eating my plants?

Feeding them something else should distract them from eating plants.

 

Alright thanks guys!! And if things don't stop, and they keep eating the plants, is it ok to put them in my pond out side that has no plants?

 

Alright thanks guys!! And if things don't stop, and they keep eating the plants, is it ok to put them in my pond out side that has no plants?

Depends, what's in the pond?

 

Nothing for now just some water and duckweed on top but we are heading towards winter in Australia and it does drop to about 5 or so degrees Celsius at the peak of winter

Oh and I'm planing on getting some goldfish for it... we had some last year, they even survived like 4 winters but then when spraying bug spray at a wasp nest on the tree above the pond, I guess the rain washed some of it into the pond and well you know what happens next... ;(

 

Nothing for now just some water and duckweed on top but we are heading towards winter in Australia and it does drop to about 5 or so degrees Celsius at the peak of winter

As long as there is food in the pond they will expand quickly. Its most likely that the Colony will die during winter due to cold weather, but you can keep an emergency group if you need to re populate

 

Wait a colony?!?!? I thought mystery snails were asexual with females and males, and I don't know what their genders are...

 

Wait a colony?!?!? I thought mystery snails were asexual with females and males, and I don't know what their genders are...

Wait, I mixed up Mystery Snails with Apple Snails. Mystery snail eggs can only be hatched in marine water parameters so if all your tanks are freshwater there will be no hope for them to hatch.

 

Think you've mixed up apple snails mystery snails with nerites they will only hatch in brackish water

 

Yeah lol ed204, you mixed them up withnerites

 

So I was wondering wat I can do to prevent my Mystery Snail from chawing down on my live plants?
P.S. I also have a nitrate snail, and he doesn't touch any of my live plants.

 

Try feeding some blanched spinach or zucchini.

 

I've never seen one eat live plants, you must have a hungry fella.

 

Are you sure it's a mystery snail and not an apple snail?

 

Try feeding some blanched spinach or zucchini.

Right now the mystery snail is eating algae wafers

 

Mystery snails and Appel snails, but more apple snails Are know to eat plants, if it’s a true mystery snail try feeding it more, if it’s an apple snail get rid of it. This is why I only keep pest snails in my tanks

 

Somebody tell me if this is a mystery snail or a apple snail?

 

MissNoodle has an apple snail that she feeds her clippings to.

 

The other possibility is that your plants are dying from another unidentified cause and the snails are eating out the melting spots. Mystery snails will only eat live plants as an alternative to starving to death, they very much prefer protein. The work it takes to eat live plants isn't worth the calories gained to them, and it's very much a "last resort" food source. But they have no problems chowing down on dead plant tissue and will readily eat plants that are dying because it's softer and much easier to eat.

Google a pic of a snail tongue. They basically eat by rasping a long, tooth covered tongue over things over and over. That's infinitely easier on a dying plant than a healthy one.

MissNoodle has an apple snail that she feeds her clippings to.

MissNoodle not to detail this thread, but I'm jealous and I demand pics lol.

Edit: sorry to the admins, I totally double posted again instead of editing, but I can't figure out how to delete it. I suck at the interwebs, sorry

 

Mine only starts nibbling new leaves when I forget to put out the zucchini.