Snail Progress Blog

October 20th 2011


I received 5 mystery snails today. I was supposed to receive 5 nickle size mystery snails. One Magenta, one Purple, one Jade, one Chestnut, and one Jade, Magenta, or Purple. I received 5 pea sized snails or a bit smaller. 2 Magentas, 2 Purples, and 1 Chestnut. Badly packed and very cold. Shells are a bit beaten up. Here's a video of me opening them. I hope I can nurse them back to health and maybe they'll breed for me .

After a few hour acclimation they are in the tank.

October 23rd 2011


Snails are growing very rapidly. Already seeing huge changes in size.
Quick picture of a snail I took today -

October 26th 2011



Amazing growth! This snail has gone to under pea size to larger than marble size since I got it! You can obviously see the grow line.

November 11th 2011



I walked over to my tank and got to see Valentina, the largest snail (magenta shell), finish laying a batch of eggs! I'm very excited. She chose a horrible place though lol. Right behind the HOB output. So the glass was all wet and it was getting some sprinkles on it ect. So I had to move the HOB. Course after moving the HOB that meant it got a lot of light. Someone mentioned something about them not supposing to get too much light (still wondering about that?) so I moved the extra light and set it over the egg clutch and turned it off. My other one is in front of it so the clutch is well shaded. And is no longer being splashed by the HOB.

 

Congrats!

 

I love the coloring on Valentina... really pretty. Can't remember what kind of snail she is... I have an apple snail that is just awesome, I love to watch how fast she moves... her name is 'Crunchy' (I know, I know). Enjoyed the videos too, great fun. Sucks that they arrived in such poor conditions, it must have felt wonderful to be put into nice warm water!!

 

congrats on the new eggs!

 

nice! btw, you have a jade? I want one of those badly! pics? I miss my magentas. your look very nice

oops, re-read the post....and you were *supposed* to get a jade, but didn't. bummmmmer.

 

Thanks for you comments! I'll probably do a day by day picture thing of the eggs to show how they grow. We'll see how the first try for these snails go. They can't be more than a few weeks old themselves ;D.

Jers- I was supposed to get a jade but I did not. The seller wouldn't reply to any of my emails concerning the fact that I didn't get a jade. A bit disappointed about that but that's okay. I should be getting some jades from this spawn. My estimates for this spawn are: 1/4 Jade, 1/4 Magenta, 1/4 Chestnut, and 1/4 Burgundy.

 

Will those eggs hatch?

 

good luck with the hatching. if you get any jades, you are more than welcome to send one my way

 

Thanks! Will do haha. If I don't get any jades I'm going to buy two and breed some.

Pictures added to the post above.

 

Great blog tracking your snails!! They have doubled in size in only a month. That's amazing!

If those eggs hatch you are going to have snails everywhere!!! Love that magenta color. I've never seen a snail with that type of color.

 

Yay! I knew you would get some soon! I believe it was me that mentioned the light in your other thread. I said the only reason you would have to remove the clutch was if it was under direct light, or near the filter out put and getting splashed constantly.

So yours is now in a great place! Are you putting them in a separate grow out tank? They are exceptionally tiny - like large sand grains and when they do fall, you risk siphoning them out and having the fish eat them.

Also, I would keep the clutch moist - but not wet. You don't want it to dry out. I just splashed water on them every day, once or twice a day. It worked very well.

 

Great blog tracking your snails!! They have doubled in size in only a month. That's amazing!

If those eggs hatch you are going to have snails everywhere!!! Love that magenta color. I've never seen a snail with that type of color.

I thought it was a good idea since they are growing like crazy. I think they have more than doubled actually. If you look at the first few pictures of them while they are acclimating and the pictures I posted previously today you'll see the change. They're in the same cup lol.

Yay! I knew you would get some soon! I believe it was me that mentioned the light in your other thread. I said the only reason you would have to remove the clutch was if it was under direct light, or near the filter out put and getting splashed constantly.

So yours is now in a great place! Are you putting them in a separate grow out tank? They are exceptionally tiny - like large sand grains and when they do fall, you risk siphoning them out and having the fish eat them.

Also, I would keep the clutch moist - but not wet. You don't want it to dry out. I just splashed water on them every day, once or twice a day. It worked very well.

Yes! I was hoping haha. These snails that I have right now can't be very old themselves so I was sorta surprised that they laid such a large clutch so young. Yes it was you that mentioned the light thing. I wasn't exactly sure. But they are in a shaded place right now. And they are in a dry place now. I'll have to splash some water on them then.

Well I was thinking that I would move the clutch to my shrimp tank to get the maximum amount of babies. Then I was thinking I'd move them to the larger tank to grow them up fast. AND then my dear Fishloreans shall probably be sent little gifts. Christmas! lol

I have some questions about snails so I'm sending you a PM lol. Hope you don't mind .

 

awesome looks like things are moving along well..

Yes christmas for fishlorians lol hmmm wonder if santa ups will bring me anything *whistles innocently*

 

An address always helps....

November 12th 2011

Added two more snails today. Two Zebra Nerites. The guy didn't even know what they were. He thought they were hybrid mystery snails. He was talking about it with someone while I was looking at the tank so when I mentioned I wanted the Nerites he was a bit confused. So I explained and got $.50 off each! So I got them both for $4.40 ;D. They both have very different patterns which is very amusing. One went into the big tank and one went to the small tank.

 

lol santa rouge lol

and you should already have it......

and looks like you make a home very suitable for snails.

 

Wow, just beautiful pictures of these amazing inverts. I thought I loved mystery snails. Didn't know jade existed tbh but been on the hunt for purple. Great progress so far it looks like.

 

LOL. A rogue santa. That sounds scary .

I do? I probably lost it haha. I don't write these things down.

It looks that way doesn't it? The nerites move so slow compared to the mysteries.

 

your cat decided she/he wanted to be in the video. lol

 

makes me want mystery snails beautiful coloring

 

I think snails are very entertaining.....always moving somewhere, looking for something. yeah nerites are a little slow haha. they're still fun to watch, since they are small and can climb places a mystery can't.

i've been looking for a jade for a while now....noooo luck. maybe you'll find some =]

 

Do you find that these snails eat plants?

 

His won't. They are pomacea bridgesii. However, pomacea canaliculata will eat every plant in your tank! Brigs are most commonly in stores.

 

Cool! I just bought some earlier today, so I was a little worried...

 

I can't believe the seller shipped them usng that method with the snails being as big as they were. He invited shell damage.

 

Snails really weren't that big. Pea size or smaller mostly. But yeah I agree with you that it was bad shipping. Do you think the shipping could cause shell deformation ect? Because I'm having trouble with one magenta snail and my chestnut's shell is looking pretty bad. The magenta looks to be growing a second shell.. it's weird and gross lol. I'll have to post a picture.

 

It is probably trying to repair itseld from all of the damage...!

 

Nope this stuff is definitely perimanent. I'll get pictures and post them for you to see in a second.


November 14 2011

Woke up this morning and found a clutch on the wall of the tank. So naturally I grabbed the camera and got down close to get a macro picture. To get a good picture I had to lay my head on the side of the tank. As I was taking the picture, which didn't come out well at all BTW, something slimy brushed the bottom of my lower eyelid. You can bet that made me jump. It was Valentina laying yet another clutch. She had just started and had hit me with her antenna. Who knows why, maybe my hair was in the way lol. But she started laying her clutch right then and there and let me take a nice video and a few pictures.

 

Wow, that shell is interesting! Great photos!

 

Cannot believe she is still laying clutches!!

 

hmm.. I know you were planning to keep the first few jades for breeding, but if this keeps up you might even be willing to send one my way! Incidentally, will you be adding extra vits./minerals to the baby snail tank just to help with growth? JK, but with so many snails it seems like you might have to add something.. Calcium, maybe?
Anyways, congrats on the 2nd and 3rd clutches!

 

wow, that is very rare you caught her laying them! that almost never happens.

so when I was breeding mine....I made a little incubator to put them in, while they floated. you get a wet paper towel, wrung out a little...to put in the bottom of a baggie. then put the clutch in a damp paper towel and keep rolling them up in about 3 sheets of towels. put everything in the baggie and blow some air into it, to give them moisture. they need moisture, but not too much.

so if you're going the floating route, that might be a good idea to do. =] you have to check them every couple days, to see the progress. and when they start to look "moldy" it's time to hatch.

 

I have done two methods for hatching. One is just float them on styrofoam in an old peanut putter jar with a crack in the lid.

Also, I float them on styrofoam in a specimen container. I put the specimen container hooked on the inside of my tank.

 

Gem - Yes I think I will add some shells to the tank once I begin growing them out. That will buffer the pH hopefully.

Jers - That's a pretty good idea! I may have to try it with one of these clutches. I wonder if temperature around the clutch matters.

Fbn - Yeah I am using the first method but they are floating in the shrimp tank.


The video. I have another update coming this evening some time -

 

Lol there is something crawling on the snail's shell at the beginning of the video.

 

Weirdest thing I've ever seen

There's 2 somethings crawling on her shell, to be exact ;D

 

LOL @ AkarI

The bugs are some sort of gnat or something haha.

Found a fourth clutch this morning. I'm guessing this one is from a Purple female because I saw the Chestnut male mating with her a day or two ago.

 

You need snaily birth control!

 

You need snaily birth control!

no he doesn't, I like mostly-free snails! ;D

 

You need snaily birth control!

no he doesn't, I like mostly-free snails! ;D

 

Nice pics and video! Your Valentina looks just like my boy Claude!

I have never seen a snail with a deformed shell like that! Can you take a few more pics, like from the front and top, etc? It is really odd!

JerI ~ I guess my snails aren't shy anymore, but I witness them laying eggs all the time! lol It also might be because they do so it seems when the lights are out at night (that's when it starts) and I go to bed later than the bf. so when I come in, I take a peek and there they are, up on the filter, one or more at a time! lol I have also caught them early in the AM getting ready for work.

J ~ You will need a bigger tank for all those clutches I think. Each one can have several hundred. If you can't get another tank, you can always do what I did - use a large plastic storage bin. Cheap, effective, can accomadate a HOB filter, heater. I used a lamp for light. You will also definetly need to keep the ph up and add calcium daily. And you will be amazed by the amount of food they will eat! (which of course = tons of poop = tons of water changes). I was doing daily WCs with mine!

I am currently working on a homemade snail food recipe. So far I am 0-2. They didn't even touch the first batch and the second kind they are so-so on. Sigh. If I find something that works I will share the recipe! I have a feeling you will be spending a lot on food in the next little while!