Need More Snails, But What Kind?
 

I need to order more snails for my upgraded tanks because there is so much more freaking glass and rock for the ones I already have to clean :rolleyes: I also have a couple of very small tufts of fuzzy green algae that I'm hoping the snails will clean up for me.

However, I don't know which snails would be better for these tasks - astreas or margaritas.

Here's what J&L has to say about margaritas:

http://www.jlaquatics.com/cgi-bin/sh...alogno=rc-marg

And astreas:

http://www.jlaquatics.com/cgi-bin/sh...ogno=rc-asnail

I'm probably only going to get one species. Which one would suit my needs best? All opinions welcome :smile:

I find that the Astrea snails are a lot tougher than the Margarita snails in that they can't die.

I ordered a cleaning crew not too long ago (a few months maybe) and all of my Margaritas have died off whereas none of my Astreas have.

The only drawback to Astrea snails is that if they fall over and you don't flip them back (or they can't flip themselves) they're gonners.

Trochus are my favorite for their speed and hardiness. They seem to outlast the other snails in my tank. I haven't had to replace any of them.

Cerith are my favorite for below the sandbed cleaning. They don't seem to die. I haven't had to replace any of them.

Money and Ringged cowries are also good for outlasting other snails. The bonus is that they look great too. I haven't had to replaced any of them.

I've bought dozens and dozens of Astreas and Margaritas and kept replacing them every couple of months but I've stopped. There are maybe 2 Astreas left and 0 Margaritas in my tank now.

I had heard somewhere that margaritas were actually a cold water snail (or maybe colder water) and didn't do so well in reef tanks long term. I never had any success with them and like the astreas much better :biggrin:

Christy :)

Yeah, my tank stays at 27C-30C during the summer and 26C during the winter. People who keep their tanks at maybe 22C-24C might have better luck. I'm just guessing.

I certaily agree with those who have no use for Margarita snails. They seem to die very quickly. Astreas are usually fine. I also like the cowries except you don't see them for a long time, and then they suddenly reappear. :mrgreen:

Currently have a variety of cerith, astreas and margaritas in my three BB tanks. The ceriths are doing okay without the sandbed in the one tank, but I don't see them lasting long without their natural environment.

Astreas, as Newguy pointed out, are not able to right themselves after a fall. Don't know haw many astreas I've saved over the years when finding that they've fallen and can't get up :mrgreen: The margaritas I have are much more adept at flipping themselves upright if they fall. Both astreas and margaritas have done well enough in my current tanks, though I think I am a little more partial to the margaritas. Tank temps are kept under 82F, and usually are 78F-80F with their room air conditioned.

Must have had some trochus in my first reef, though that was years ago, and J&L doesn't seem to carry them. Tried a Google search for them, and found nothing but foreign language sites :frown:

Don't know anything about money or ringed cowries, though they sound like they get big and may need sandbeds.

All my current snails were purchased locally and did not suffer the immediate strains of shipping, which I think accounts for many losses.

Will have a look at one of the lfs tonight to see what kinds of snails they have. Also want to make sure I don't import fish diseases when I introduce them into my tanks :evil:

Thanks for the advice :smile:

No they don't get big at all, and don't need sandbeds. When I see them again, I will get more. :eek:

Yeah, most likely, they are sitting on their eggs under some rocks. They sit on them until they hatch. Interesting behavior.



http://www.hyperdream.com/~samw/reef...g_crop_std.jpg

Some info on Trochus. The ones I have are the red striped ones. Very easy to keep and they seem to flip themselves over without problems. They are pricey and hard to find though.

http://www.premiumaquatics.com/thest...L-TROCHUS.html

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/p...=23&pCatId=564