columbellids (IPSF Mis-IDed Grazers)

[Foster]

Hi Ron - Back in 4/04 I purchased a handfull of the Strombus grazers from IPSF, which turned out to be "columbellids". My current 225 tank has become overwhelmed with them. They breed like crazy, and are everywere I look. I noticed one camped out in my A.Millepora which begins to worry me a little. Are there any reports of this species causing problems in home aquaria? ie: crazing on corals (SPS)/clams / and/or becoming preditory in large numbers

Thanks

...sam

[rshimek]

Hi Sam,

Snails don't "become" predators. :D They either are - or they are not. All evidence that I have seen is that these animals are algal grazers. I doubt they can even digest flesh or fleshy byproducts. They may bother the corals simply by "walking" on them, but I don't think it is at all likely that they are eating them.

[NicoleC]

Sam, IME they won't breed past their food source, but they take advantage of new food sources very quickly. If you give away or sell a bunch, you will either a) reduce your numbers, because the snails would have died without food anyway, or b) get a fresh crop of egg sacks within days.

I have one pagoda coral that always seem to have a snail in it for a while. Although it didn't seem to bother the coral, it bothered me. One of my anemone went for a walkabout and set up camp right beside the coral, so I moved it... no more snails. I think because where the coral was underneath a powerhead, maybe the snails ended up getting blown there and couldn't get out because the coral slimes you badly if you even look at it cross-eyed. Just a theory. I have hundreds of these snails, and they don't bother anything.