Battling snails

[Pocketlama]

A few days ago my two snails had a rather intense fight. One took most of the harm and didn't move at all the first day. Now it is moving but only half to one inch here and there. I guess there's nothing to do but wait and watch it heal. Is this a common thing? I've enclosed a picture of the loser. The other one is off frolicking and I can't see it at the moment.

[Clown79]

What kind of snails?

 

I've never seen mine fight. I have snails hitch a ride on another with no issue.

 

Theres really not much you can do for it

[Pocketlama]

I have no idea what kind of snails. I asked the LFS guy for some snails and he said, "here you go." The winner seems to have been turbo-charged after the fight. Every time I see him he's trucking to some new part of the tank. Before he was the slow one. I told the LFS about it and he'd never heard anything about that happening either. Strange

 

 

What kind of snails?

I've never seen mine fight. I have snails hitch a ride on another with no issue.

Theres really not much you can do for it

[Clown79]

Do you have a pic of the snails?

[Water Dog]

Looks like a banded trochus snail. Fast little buggers as far as snails go. Have never seen mine fight though.

[Mariaface]

The closest I've seen to fighting with my banded trochus is that it'll wave its shell around pretty quickly if it senses pressure it doesn't like. A hermit tried to take a ride on its shell and it flicked it right off.

 

Maybe your slower snail got whacked up a bit and is taking things slow in order to avoid predation? Or maybe you should pick it out of the tank and give it a sniff to see if it's dead/dying, because everyone should experience the smell of snail death at least once in their lives. It's so bad.

[Clown79]

Lol. Snail death and snail waste stinks like no other.

[Pocketlama]

The slow one used to be the fast one but now it's only going about an inch in any direction. I never would have thought they would fight each other like that. They had their shells up and looked like they were duking it out. I just pulled it out and it smells a little but not too much. I wonder if it's going to recover. :-(

 

 

The closest I've seen to fighting with my banded trochus is that it'll wave its shell around pretty quickly if it senses pressure it doesn't like. A hermit tried to take a ride on its shell and it flicked it right off.

 

Maybe your slower snail got whacked up a bit and is taking things slow in order to avoid predation? Or maybe you should pick it out of the tank and give it a sniff to see if it's dead/dying, because everyone should experience the smell of snail death at least once in their lives. It's

[Newstead]

How is it doing today? Glad to see I am not the only one who worries about their snails!

[tetraodon]

someone needs to draw a snail greaser style, thats honestly what i pictured. ive seen my snails get a little pushy with each other, but that was only once.

[Mariaface]

They had their shells up and looked like they were duking it out.

 

 

 

 

You sure they didn't do the do?

 

Nah, keep an eye out on the slow one.

[Pocketlama]

How is it doing today? Glad to see I am not the only one who worries about their snails!

 

 

I took it out and smelled it and I put it back. It's been in that same place since yesterday. He may be gone. Too bad, he was my favorite one. :-(

[Mariaface]

 

 

I took it out and smelled it and I put it back. It's been in that same place since yesterday. He may be gone. Too bad, he was my favorite one. :-(

 

 

I know it sounds bad, but my advice would be to not put it back. The next time you pick it up, it may not be a solid anymore. >>

[Pocketlama]

 

 

I know it sounds bad, but my advice would be to not put it back. The next time you pick it up, it may not be a solid anymore. >>

 

Well that is indeed sad. :`-( I'll take your advice, though, because I don't want a rotting snail in there.

[jestep]

Trochus snails don't fight, I don't think they could fight if they wanted to. They will reproduce in the home aquarium though and if one is stressed they will basically release eggs or sperm which causes other trochus in the same tank to do the same thing, which looks something like what you're describing. Sometimes you can see this, it would look like a puff of a white cloud or something, but it's quickly dispersed. I would bet, that's what you were observing, they will do it when they are stressed, it's basically an instinctual response to reproduce before they die.

 

How old is this tank? If the tank is cycling or has ammonia or significant NO2 or NO3 in it, or a lack of food which is common in a new tank, I would lean towards the one snail was a dying and this was their last effort to pass on their genes.

[Mariaface]

I would bet, that's what you were observing, they will do it when they are stressed, it's basically an instinctual response to reproduce before they die.

 

 

...So this is terrifying?! I've caught my banded trochus snail doing this twice now, and he's still alive and kicking months later. Like, flipping a hermit crab off of its shell, eating all the film algae it can, climbing high and low, etc. Doing snail things. Should I be worried?

[jestep]

 

 

...So this is terrifying?! I've caught my banded trochus snail doing this twice now, and he's still alive and kicking months later. Like, flipping a hermit crab off of its shell, eating all the film algae it can, climbing high and low, etc. Doing snail things. Should I be worried?

 

They don't necessarily automatically die, they will spawn (not entirely sure that's what it's called with snails...) under good circumstances as well, but stress can cause it. The OP's joined date was fairly new, so a new tank without a ton of food would be a potential stressor. Snails tend to die without warning in my experience as well, so it's really tough to tell if they are thriving or a few days of missed food away from perishing.

 

Basically the same thing for BTA's. They either split when they are large and extremely healthy, or they split when they are severely stressed as a last ditch effort to carry on their genetics. I cringe when I read stories of happy reef keepers with 3 - 4in BTA's that keep splitting because it is usually an indication of severe stress on the anemone and they're splitting for survival. I recently saw a BTA that was over 16" when inflated, so unless it's entirely a genetic mutation that propagates quickly, they have a ton of potential.

 

Edit: Off topic, but here's the BTA I'm referring to, this is my picture as well. There's probably bigger ones out there, but this is the largest single BTA I've seen. I'd conservatively put it at about 14 x 16in, probably bigger. It was absolutely massive.

 

[Mariaface]

 

 

 

 

...Cue my sigh of relief.

 

Okay. I knew that 'flourishing' conditions should also cause it, in the back of my head? But I've had a hell of a couple of weeks and immediately assumed I was killing my inhabitants. My trochus snails (two) are safe, then. For now.

 

Thanks!

[Pocketlama]

 

They don't necessarily automatically die, they will spawn (not entirely sure that's what it's called with snails...) under good circumstances as well, but stress can cause it. The OP's joined date was fairly new, so a new tank without a ton of food would be a potential stressor. Snails tend to die without warning in my experience as well, so it's really tough to tell if they are thriving or a few days of missed food away from perishing.

 

Basically the same thing for BTA's. They either split when they are large and extremely healthy, or they split when they are severely stressed as a last ditch effort to carry on their genetics. I cringe when I read stories of happy reef keepers with 3 - 4in BTA's that keep splitting because it is usually an indication of severe stress on the anemone and they're splitting for survival. I recently saw a BTA that was over 16" when inflated, so unless it's entirely a genetic mutation that propagates quickly, they have a ton of potential.

 

Edit: Off topic, but here's the BTA I'm referring to, this is my picture as well. There's probably bigger ones out there, but this is the largest single BTA I've seen. I'd conservatively put it at about 14 x 16in, probably bigger. It was absolutely massive.

 

"The OP's joined date was fairly new, so a new tank without a ton of food would be a potential stressor."

 

That's right. My tank isn't more than four months old so yeah there's not much food yet. I'll take slow-poke out as he hasn't moved in a day now. I expect he's dead or dying. Thanks for the info!

[Clown79]

My hermits get to a dead snail before i can.

 

The other issue is, you never know how old or healthy a snail is when you purchase it.