Article on snails

[daveisrael]

Loved your article. These little guys never get much attention.

I was reading what you wrote about Shield Limipets (Scutus unguis) not surviving very long or reproducing in reef tanks. I bought a small piece of live rock about a year ago to put in my propagation tank. I noticed two of the little black guys (Shield Limpets) in the prop tank after I put the rock in. After reading about them I put them into my display tank. Almost a year later, I have about twenty of them that I have counted (probably many more that I have not seen as they mostly come out at night). The original two are each about 1 1/2 to 2inches long now (started at about a 1/2 inch). They are great little grazers and do a terrific job of keeping the rock clean. They seem to reproduce like crazy though! Are they egg layers?

I've also transferred them back into my prop. tank and also a small 20 gallon that is only filtered by live rock and powerheads (no fish in that one). They seems to grow and reproduce no matter where I put them. I don't know why more people don't use these guys, they don't bother anything (besides algae) that I can tell.

Just thought I'd let you know.

Dave Israel

[rshimek]

Hi Dave,

[thanks] for the information!

[dragonsieu]

Hello I am certain I have the columbellid snails now,I originally thought I had a nassurius type snail as they act(burying and grazing) similiar but the patterns werent identical from what I have seen.But after seeing the pictures,the markings are exactly like that.They also laid capsule like eggs.I have to say I love them,they are doing a good job in my new 135 grazing on glass and sandbed,I really do beleive they are valuable to my tank.I thought about removing them but now Im glad I diddnt,these guys seem to do everything,scavenge,algae.Great article!

[rshimek]

Hi,

Am glad you found it useful. :D The columbellid grazers are really marvelous critters for our systems.

[o2deco]

Great article .. I found this article while researching the problems with my margarita snails. I bout 6 a week ago and it seems like each day I will find one on the bottom with it self sealed in its shell. Eventually my nassarius snails attack it and I guess eat them. My LFS recommended them to me and they seem to be very popular. But your article says they require colder temp water.

My Reef is kept @ 82 deg F. Do you think this is why they are dying ?

Thanks again.

[rshimek]

Hi,

[welcome]

These snails require water temperatures in the 50-60 deg F range. They can - for short periods - tolerate warmer temperatures. Yes, the high temperature is the cause of death.

[o2deco]

This is an outrage to me that Aquatic Retailers will sell these as part of a reef cleanup crew.

What yould you recommend in a reef tank as an algae grazer ?

[socalreefer73]

Hmmm... Interesting, I was just checking on something... the article mentions margarite as of Tegula funebralis, whereas a website sells them as Margarites pupillus... anyone know what the deal on this is???

[rshimek]

Hi,

They have misidentified them. :D And it really doesn't matter... Margarites pupillus is another north temperate and boreal snail that would be eminently unsuited for coral reef aquaria.