Snails appearing out of no-where

[marisa]

O.k. my roomate Jenn has 7 African Dwarf Frogs. They are doing well and recently she moved the frogs (which she had for over a year already) into a new, larger tank.

A couple weeks later we see a snail. Under the water, and about as big as a pencil eraser. Jenn accused someone of playing tricks and putting the snail in but I totally didn't do that. Then we looked at any possible way...I asked if they have or had any live plants, which they dont;.....I asked if they had put anything *anything* straight from the pet store into this tank that the snail could have travelled on, nope and since she already had the frogs they aren't the "source" But hey, he is cute and she gave up trying to figure it out.

Then tonight we are eating dinner kinda chatting about the tank and where we might want to move it. And my roomates get close up to check out the filter and plants and there is ANOTHER snail. The original one was in the back and this one appeared in the front, about the size of a pencil TIP! That tiny. So now two snails have appeared out of nowhere.

What the hell is going on? Does anyone have any idea?

Marisa

[Shane Tesser]

I think they might be magical :D. Seriously Marisa...i wish i had a dollar for every time someone asked that question lol. We have covered this here a couple of times...but i dont mind helping you out with this. First off...your multiple snail question is quite simple. The majority of snails that are aquatic are a-sexual. Therefore you only need one..and presto..you have thousands a week or two after. Some ppl look at them as a pure nuisence...while others like myself have learned to live and create a happy balance of them. As to where they came from, its odd i know..but also facinating.

First off..these guys are super resiliant. Alot of them can survive out of water for a long period of time..while others die within hours. You stated that you did not add anything new to the tank which would have caused them to enter it..but infact you have...you have fed your frogs. Snails eggs are even more tough then mom and dad for the most part...able to survive often mixed into the very food that you are feeding your first. At the same time...it is possible that your frogs did infact carry these eggs...if your new snail looks small...well the eggs are even smaller. Here is my theory...laugh if you will..but ill throw this out to you and see what you think. I would believe that if infact it had not entered via a food source..these little buggers were possibly carried into the tank by either the frogs..a decoration etc...perhaps only one survived...the egg floated in the water..was sucked into the filter medium, and there it managed to turn into a snail..trapped but easily able to survive on the bacteria..etc inside the filter housing. There it multiplied...and either a tiny new snail made it out of the filter and into the tank...or an egg did.

Or!!! Perhaps they have actually been there for awhile and are a sand snail. These guys are often extremely tiny...and live almost exclusively in the gravel when the lights are on. When the lights go off..they come out and play :) . Perhaps..there is infact hundreds already..but they are too small to see...the parents, or adults usually end up growing to a larger size and will often forge out during the day light hours. If your room mate keeps a schedule for light...ie..turns them on when she wakes up at "X" time...and turns them off at "X" time...then the snails have been on the same schedule and have managed to elude you :(

As for ridding them...or hopefully maintaining them...well thats another chapter that i will tackle for you if need be. In the meantime..you will get to watch the population of your new buddies explode into the hundreds over the next couple of weeks. I hope this has helped :D

[marisa]

Wow thanks Shane I had no idea this was a somewhat common thing. I don't keep fish anymore myself but I will be passing this information on. It was freaking us out.

I went to check the filter medium like you said when I read that just to see if I could see anything but before I even touched it I saw a mass of tiny tiny eggs behind the filter on the outside of it but underwater (its fluval underwater something or other) ....I am assuming this is the invasion.......

All snails are welcome here luckily so these guys can multiply at their hearts content :)

Marisa

[Pythonian]

Marisa.. he isn't lying when he says they will multiply.. i had a tank way back in the day with tetras and a columbian redtail shark ... i brought a plant home and washed it really really well .. put it in a seperate tank for a week the put it in this one.. about 3 days later i saw a snail and was like "awww" .. literally 3 weeks later i had to take all the water out aall the plants clean out everything .. put in new gravel .. and new water... the snails came back 3 days later.. i swear they will survive a nucleur blast! and they reproduce like nobodies buisness >. they are cute and actually i found clean algae.. but be ready for a small army of snails within the next couple of days,.

Mike

[homebrewed]

One way to clear them out if they do become a problem, is to get a clown loach. They absolutly love to eat snails, they are peaceful towards other fish, and are great fish. Or a puffer will clear that up no problem. This way you don't have to mess around with chemicals, and it gives a reason to buy more fish :D

[Shane Tesser]

Your dead on about the clowns..thats why i have a small army of them....and pakistani loaches will do the same..i have several of those as well...both are great to keep, colourful and always active :D

[girraffasaurus]

I know what you guys mean about them lasting through anything. I had a snail for awhile that I forgot about, so when I was cleaning my betta's tank I cleaned everything in scalding hot water and rinsed it all over the sink. The little snail reappeared a couple days later! I decided to call him Superman. I don't know if it's because I only keep small tanks (1 and 2 gallon) or what, because mine have never reproduced like crazy. I was hoping that I'd get a few extras to put in with my other bettas and my frogs, but I have yet to be overrun. I think I'm the only person on Earth who wants to have a small snail explosion!!!

[marisa]

Us too! My roomates love the little guys we have seen so far and they are keeping a close eye on the eggs! I can't wait to see more of them. I really like them.

Marisa