What kind of snails are these

[jimmy_c]

My tanks has been running for about 6 weeks. No major issues. Some algea but that is to be exptected. Not the best pic but about a week ago I started seeing these white specks now they have grown. I have one that is about the sze of a fingernail. These picuted are about the size of 1/2 a pea or smaller... There are dozens of these... Are they bad? Am I going to get over run with them...?

Need some help Guru's knowing what to do... They don't seem to be bothering anything...yet.

 

 

[Mariaface]

I can't really tell with all the light being reflected off of them, but you may want to check here for starters and see if you can match them up with anything.

[Chezwyn]

Look like baby Nerites... I think! They reproduce like crazy for me and look very similar.

[cindyp]

they're stomatella snails.

 

i got them too around 8 weeks in in

my 3g pico. they are GREAT cuc. because

they come free, and they don't knock

things over like my cerith snails did.

 

mine were mostly tan and white, but i got

a cool bigger black one. i've moved as many

of them into my new 8g nano as i could.

 

eta: it also took me a while to ID them as

a noob.

[ReeferBoo]

Looks like baby nerites or collinistas, I have a few that often come out at night

[Mariaface]

Maybe it's distortion, but a couple of them look like they have pointed ends. I don't think nerites or collonistas have that, but then the rest of them are rounded.

 

Collonistas tend to be round and light colored with darker stripes on the shell (not to be confused with sundial snails), and they'll top off at around .25". Great clean-up snails, and they can and will reproduce if there's enough food to go around (I'm not sure nerites will reproduce in our aquariums, I read it was rare). The rounder ones in the photo are reminiscent of collonistas.

 

Stomatella snails will be flatter, and the foot usually takes up more surface area than the shell does.

[jimmy_c]

Okay so nothing to worry about??? Not kidding... I got dozens of these about the size of a pin head, and a few larger ones.

Thanks Maria.. I'll check that out..

[cindyp]

my largest stomatella is maybe the

size of my pinky nail. google a few of

these suggestions and maybe see which

it looks like. for me, the giveaway is a wispy

tentacle in the front for stomatellas. though

maybe some other snails have them, but

mine are definitely very thin, long, wispy and

the snails wave them around.

[Lawnman]

they're stomatella snails.

 

i got them too around 8 weeks in in

my 3g pico. they are GREAT cuc. because

they come free, and they don't knock

things over like my cerith snails did.

 

mine were mostly tan and white, but i got

a cool bigger black one. i've moved as many

of them into my new 8g nano as i could.

 

eta: it also took me a while to ID them as

a noob.

+1 awesome snails

[Mariaface]

Okay so nothing to worry about??? Not kidding... I got dozens of these about the size of a pin head, and a few larger ones.

Thanks Maria.. I'll check that out..

 

If you don't have anything they could be predators of, and they're reproducing in your tank, then you won't need to worry. Without a food source, they wouldn't be there. And if all you have for them is algae and detritus and microfauna in the sandbed, that's what they're eating. You've only had the tank six weeks, right?

[jimmy_c]

Cindyp; I think your right (stomatella) they all have two antenna in front and the one large does look like it has a shell of some sort. Mine are all white as you can see. Freeking me out cause there are sooooo many... guess I don't need a cuc now...lol...

[Lawnman]

Cindyp; I think your right (stomatella) they all have two antenna in front and the one large does look like it has a shell of some sort. Mine are all white as you can see. Freeking me out cause there are sooooo many... guess I don't need a cuc now...lol...

They are awesome snails. I like them because they will keep frag plugs clean and crevices clean. I have about 100 of them in my tank. You will mainly see them covering the glass after the lights have been off a few hours.

[Angel<3Nanos]

I have hundreds of stomatellas. Babies and adults. They all come out at night. Except the bigger ones, those I see every day.

[cindyp]

Cindyp; I think your right (stomatella) they all have two antenna in front and the one large does look like it has a shell of some sort. Mine are all white as you can see. Freeking me out cause there are sooooo many... guess I don't need a cuc now...lol...

 

no worries! they also seem to come and go

with cycles. but i have never had any trouble

with them, and i had a 3g pico. and as i said,

i tried to save as many of them for my 8g as i could.

i moved them over on a plastic spoon.

 

they are usually tan and white and their shells

are smaller than their bodies at times. but when they

need to, they'll go under the shell like when i try

and move them from tank to tank. so no worries.

one of the most raddest hitch hikers out there.

[Tropi]

I've got heaps of stomatella snails in my tank to, they have really gone up in number the longer my tank has been running. Sometimes I'll get a little line up off them moving along the glass doing their thing

[Mr. Microscope]

no

no

no

no

no

 

Not stomatellas

 

Collonistas! They stay that small and will plague your tank, but in a good way. They're great members of the CUC and maintain their population on their own. I've had these for years and seen their populations wax and wain over time. They're a lot more active at night.

 

EDIT: here's a video I made a while ago that features some collonista snails. Check out the 0:25 and 1:18 mark.

[Lawnman]

nononononoNot stomatellasCollonistas! They stay that small and will plague your tank, but in a good way. They're great members of the CUC and maintain their population on their own. I've had these for years and seen their populations wax and wain over time. They're a lot more active at night.EDIT: here's a video I made a while ago that features some collonista snails.http://youtu.be/ufS_fDURSr4'>http://youtu.be/ufS_fDURSr4

You think so? Collonistas look more like Sundial snails to me. I am sticking with Stomatella .

 

Guess OP should answer if the shell has any markings.

[hey]

hard to tell from the underside, the antennae look like stoma to me but I don't have a sense of scale in the picture.

[Mr. Microscope]

You think so? Collonistas look more like Sundial snails to me. I am sticking with Stomatella .

 

Guess OP should answer if the shell has any markings.

hard to tell from the underside, the antennae look like stoma to me but I don't have a sense of scale in the picture.

99.9% sure they're collonistas. Some look very white, others have a slight sundial look to them. They also have that antennae/eye appearance when viewed up close.

[Lawnman]

99.9% sure they're collonistas. Some look very white, others have a slight sundial look to them. They also have that antennae/eye look to them when viewed up close.

Plus Stomatella are usually not white. We might have a winner here give Scope his prize .

[hey]

Plus Stomatella are usually not white. We might have a winner here give Scope his prize .

 

stomas come in all colors do yours tend to stay black? I have had some crazy looking ones like mottled black and white. My collonistas are all very tiny. If that water droplet is to give a sense of scale in the picture these are probably collonistas.

[Lawnman]

stomas come in all colors do yours tend to stay black? I have had some crazy looking ones like mottled black and white. My collonistas are all very tiny. If that water droplet is to give a sense of scale in the picture these are probably collonistas.

Yes mine tend to stay black or a mix of black and white. I have a few that get this black and white with a little burgundy in the shell. I don't have any that are all white.

[hey]

Yes mine tend to stay black or a mix of black and white. I have a few that get this black and white with a little burgundy in the shell. I don't have any that are all white.

Ah i have had some whites aswell. My new tank doesn't have any in it though which is rly a bummer I need to find some at the lfs. So far I have found tons of micro brittles though which I guess is a decent trade. The problem with finding them is they are really freakin nocturnal.

[cindyp]

i DO have white stomatellas.

they might be speckled and a little

tan, but honestly, when i had first

looked i mine, i didn't realize they

had shells. i had to look carefully, as

most their bodies are poking out of their

shell half the time.

[jimmy_c]

If you look at that video at time stamp 1:20 that is what I have. Ranging from pin head to 1/8" one is aobut 1/2" in size. Will see if I can get a better pic. I need to add here the larger one the snail is white but its top shell is brown,tan,black in no picticular pattern.