Nassarius but no fish?

[Mr. Microscope]

I'm not planning to have any fish. Is there any advantage other than having my sand moved around if I get a Nassarius? Would there even be enough food for it?

 

I'm planning to get a Nerite and a couple dwarf Ceriths. Just wondering if I should bother with the Nassarius. Is there any pico safe CUC member to airate the sand other than Nassarius?

[lakshwadeep]

Nassarius snails are not necessary. You will have pods and worms that help move through the sand, and a shallow sand bed doesn't really need aeration to function properly.

[KingJames]

My Nassarius snails always stay at the top on my tank

[nanoreefnate]

Nassarius snails are not necessary. You will have pods and worms that help move through the sand, and a shallow sand bed doesn't really need aeration to function properly.

+1.

unless you have a 3" sandbed...

[Mr. Microscope]

Great to know. Thanks! Yes, I've got plenty of pods and worms in there. I found some very tiny pods on the glass today. They look different and much smaller than the ones on the rocks.

 

I just got 2 Nerites and 2 Ceriths. The Nerites were going nuts today moving all over the tank, but the Ceriths didn't really move at all. I set one on a rock and it eventually did a 360, but nothing else. The other, I set in the sand and it just started burying itself. I'm interested to see where they will be when I get to the lab tomorrow.

[pillowpantss]

Will you have to feed Nassarius snails if you have zero fish? I am going to pick up some of these as recommend from reefcleaners.org. What type of food should I feed them if I do need to and how often? Thanks!

[BustytheSnowMaam]

Will you have to feed Nassarius snails if you have zero fish? I am going to pick up some of these as recommend from reefcleaners.org. What type of food should I feed them if I do need to and how often? Thanks!

 

If you don't have fish to feed then I would drop something in there once in awhile. I'm not sure if they'd consume pelleted food, but you could offer it a piece of shrimp or frozen seafood. Just remember that nass snails are carnivores, not algae consumers. If you want CUC and don't have fish, you wouldn't need something like a nass to consume the leftovers.

 

Great to know. Thanks! Yes, I've got plenty of pods and worms in there. I found some very tiny pods on the glass today. They look different and much smaller than the ones on the rocks.

 

I just got 2 Nerites and 2 Ceriths. The Nerites were going nuts today moving all over the tank, but the Ceriths didn't really move at all. I set one on a rock and it eventually did a 360, but nothing else. The other, I set in the sand and it just started burying itself. I'm interested to see where they will be when I get to the lab tomorrow.

 

Mexican ceriths (sometimes called bajas) will burrow into the sandbed, and clean a bit between the sand and the glass. Just a suggestion for the future.

[kinetic]

Nass in aquariums are often times starving, and if you have no fish and you don't feed chunky food to the bottom of the tank, they'll starve even faster.

[pillowpantss]

Got it! Was going to get them because reefcleaners.org recommend it but I'll go without them for awhile.

[carbon-mantis]

Mine love shrimp pellets. Drop one in and they come out of their foxholes like little mollusk commandos, secure the targeted pellet, and extract it to the safe zone.