Can snails climb out of the tank?
 

Hey guys i bought a clean up crew yesterday for my 90 gallon, its a standard oceanic tank with the black rim around the top. I bought about 30 of the small cerith snails, margarita snails, and the other small type cannot remember the names, Also bought one strawberry top hat snails because i liked the look of it lol.

Anyways i have a little boy about 10 months who is crawling up a storm so im kinda worried about a snail getting out and my kid eating it or choking on it or something. He puts everything he can fit in his mouth in his mouth.

Thanks a lot!

One does it every once in a while for me

Yes
 

Yes they can... not a common occurrence but it can happen. I used to work in an LFS and I saw a few outside tanks.

I've never seen any of my snails more than a couple of inches above the water line (cerith, nassarius, tronchus)

Yup I went through a week of putting a snail or two back in the tank after crawling out at night.

They also pooped on the outside of my tank so I was not impressed :biggrin:

Ok guys thanks ill have to have to watch out for it.

A lot of snails can breath air so exiting the water for periods of time is not uncommon. My margaritas often climb onto my two mangroves that grow out of my overflow and remain there for long periods of time.

If memory serves, marguerite snails are intertidal. They will likely eventually crawl out and you'll find shells in the oddest of places. The others you listed should stay in though.

I recently found a 10 foot slime trail over my carpet left by a bumblebee snail that started by my FW tank and ended up in my netcentre. Found the thing, looked totally dessicated and dry but tossed it back in the tank and he was still alive.

Stupid snails. :lol:

PS. Everyone seems to spell it "margarita" but I think that's actually a yummy slushy drink instead. :drinking: Which I am now in want of one. But I'm a work so I can't. So, um, yeah, THANKS A LOT ! :p

lol i thought thats what they were actually called.

Could well be. I've seen so many different spellings of it but in the end it's a common name so it's probably a commonly accepted version.

(I still want the drink now though.)

I am totally with you on wanting the drink, only problem is they give the worst hangovers cause of all the sugar(I was recently on a mexican cruse) lol

I had a Hermit (Mr. Green) that kept getting out.... I found him 4 times... the 5th time... he was not so lucky and met his fate! I tried everything to keep that sucker in there.. he just did not like it.. lol!

I prefer on the rocks using fresh lime juice it takes awhile to make from scratch though. Then you don't have to worry about the sugar and can taste the tequila.

I noticed my stomatella snails like to get into everything and go everywhere. I had the same experience with having them appear dessicated and then come right back to life when put into the tanks.

here is my proof i caught them trying to escape durring a cleaning day

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6165.jpg

Haha valiant effort you gotta admit!

Mine are always poking their heads above the surface but they hang there a while and then go back down. Guess I'll also have to keep an eye out. My son would eat one without hesitation.