Are these vermetid snails on my Astrea?

[holy carp]

And are they good to keep? I read somewhere they make a mucous that is bad for corals.

 

 

They seem to be pretty sensitive to light. I see something pop out the top when the lights are off, but as soon as I illuminate it for a better look or photo, it pops right back inside... Like Whack-A-Mole.

[theleftcoastguy]

Do you see them cast out the mucous string when there's food/particulates in the water column. They look like they could be, but probably for sure if you see their net out. I had some that looked similar to those for what it's worth.

[holy carp]

I haven't seen any mucous extended. Really, it almost just looks like a little snail head the pops out and then retracts. It seems to have two little antennae feelers that looks snail-like. Here are a couple other close-ups I just took where the head seems to be popping out a tiny bit. It does so more after hours.

 

I think you can see what looks like an operculum to me in this photo:

 

Here you can see what I meant by the two antennae feelers that are pointing down and to the right:

 

[theleftcoastguy]

They do look like them to me, the heads look similar to ones I've seen( two small tentacles poking out of the shell), same with building their shell in that spiral fashion. Maybe someone else with more knowledge can confirm.

 

Also, I'm not typically a proponent of killing 'pests' in tanks, but I read an article linking them to decreased coral growth in real reefs, and observed their mucous net irritating corals in my personal tank, so I canned the ones that I had.

 

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog/vermetid-snails-harm-coral-reefs-with-multiprong-attack

http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/early/2010/05/18/rsbl.2010.0291.full

[metrokat]

That's a whack-a-vermetid

[holy carp]

Those buggers have officially been whacked!

 

I pulled that snail and snipped those things off with the bone cutters. They actually made a rewarding crunch.

 

Thanks for that advanced aquarist article, leftcoastguy. I would have otherwise been inclined (like you said) to leave them until there's evidence of harm, but that article clearly indicated to bar no holds in their removal. Some of my other Astrea appear to have some small shell irregularities, but I'll have to wait to see if they are other vermetid snails or what. Fortunately in a small tank like mine, they should be easy enough to spot and remove manually. (knock wood)

[clownfitch]

That's a whack-a-vermetid

hahahahahaha! This! ^^^^^^^^^

 

sorry but that struck me as hilarious

[theleftcoastguy]

No problem. Apparently they reproduce quickly so watch them closely, although I didn't have an issue managing mine. Good luck with your tank!

[amphipod]

Take note that only sps corals are harmed by vermetids, no other coral types are known to be affected by vermetid growth.