Snail Population Boom

Scavenger · #1 07-14-2005, 04:54 PM

Well, about a year ago, I noticed a bunch of baby snails on my glass. In comments on posts , most people agreed that they would "go away" in a bit of time. Well ever since then, my snails have been laying eggs on a regular basis. Both turbo and cerinth seem to be the most active.

Anyway, upon numerous after dark tank inspections, I have noticed the little guys are growing up and I have multiple batches of what I think are turbo snails. The oldest and largest are about the size of nassarius snails now and the sizes are pretty uniform. It is clearly odvious that there are multiple broods thriving in the tank, as you can see the size groups step down to all the way to the tiny little guys I see the most of.

Last night during a night tank inspection, I was very hard pressed to find any square inch of surface (rock or glass) that did not have at least 1 small snail on. I estimate their numbers now in the 1000's not 100's as I did before. I got a very clear look at some of the larger ones and am quite confident I have a turbo farm on the go. They are the spitting image of their larger relatives.

If this continues as it is going, I may have some snails for sale in the months to come. Who knows? At least this is a side of the hobby I never expected, and watching it develop is quite interesting at the least.

christyf5 · #2 07-14-2005, 04:56 PM

Woohoo! Thats awesome.

Sign me up for the snail sales list

muck · #3 07-14-2005, 05:11 PM

Are you sure they aren't Collonista Snails..??
I have an army of them in my tank as well that you see mostly at night.

Sometimes dubbed the "mini turbo" and they are great algae eaters..

(2/3 of the way down the article)
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rs/

Scavenger · #4 07-14-2005, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by muck

Are you sure they aren't Collonista Snails..??
I have an army of them in my tank as well that you see mostly at night.

Sometimes dubbed the "mini turbo" and they are great algae eaters..

(2/3 of the way down the article)
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rs/

Hmm.. Not sure now. I've never read that link. I guess I'll watch for growth. The largest I have are the max size of 1/4th inch stated in the article. Maybe I'll attempt to capture one tonight to photograph in a brighter enviroment. Then post picture for opinions.