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Hello all.

I have another question about my aquarium that I setup last week. This morning when I got up, there is a strange creature in the tank that I didn't put there!
It kinda resembles a baby snail. It's really really small, but has antenna, and is walking around on the inside of the tank. It appears to have a shell and a slimy foot like a snail. I'm very confused as to where it's came from! I have 3 Bloodfin Tetras, and 2 guppies in the tank. I also have three live plants from a LFS. Everything else is brand new. New tank, new filter, new ornaments, new driftwood... I know for sure didn't put any snails in there! I didn’t notice is at all in the past 5 days. It just randomly appeared this morning! Any suggestions???
Troy

It probably came in with the plants, there may be more than one. You should remove them before they multiply and overpopulate the tank. To do this place a slice of zuchini or cucumber in the tank overnight, in the morning remove it before turning on the lights and throw it away, repeat this until no more snails are in the tank. It may take awhile to remove them all but you'll be glad that you did once it is over.

It's very likely there were snail eggs on your live plants. Then hatched and that's what you have now. Depending on what kind it is, it might stay relatively small or get bigger. They're pretty good at hiding, and often go down around the gravel especially when the lights are on. If there's more than one in there it's possible they'll breed and you'll have a healthy snail colony. Malaysian trumpet snails are actually considered desirable, and as long as you don't overfeed, any population of snails won't get out of control.

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Yes, after all these years, my over-eagerness to get plants in my tank meant that I missed a little guy last week too. Unless you really thoroughly rinse and inspect plants before adding them, you're bound to get a snail from time to time. Sometimes they can be a lovely addition though, as some can be rather pretty and they are usually very good little clean-up guys.

I vote! Do you?

"Malaysian trumpet snails are actually considered desirable, and as long as you don't overfeed, any population of snails won't get out of control."

Ditto what superlion said . I was lucky that the first snails I got on the first plants I got were MTS, I love those guys!

Never had a problem with them and treated them just like any other occupant of my tank, made sure they were fed if there wasn't enough algae. MTS burrow in the substrate and help keep it turned, just like earthworms in a garden.

However....
Many other snails can be harmful to the tank. Depending on the shape of the shell you may want to take defensive actions now before the problem gets out of hand.

^_^

I'm thinking of 3 zebra loaches for my tank who will enjoy the snails, so perhaps this isn't so bad after all?

I vote! Do you?

May not be bad, but again depends on what kind of snail you have. If possible, pics would be a great help. You can post them on photobucket then provide a link.

I'm fairly sure that MTS cause trouble for loaches since their shells are harder than say pond snails.

^_^

I posted a couple in the inverts forum. I'll repost the links here. They're not great, but they might help.

ca416295, do yours look like this little guy?

http://img75.imageshack.us/my.php?image=oct310700101mp7.jpg

http://img75.imageshack.us/my.php?image=oct3107003ja1.jpg

I vote! Do you?

Twilight, those will be fine for loaches. I've known them as "pond snails" granted I think that name can be applied to many snails.

I've got pics somewhere of my MTS, but can't find them so I've enlisted the help of ze googles.

Attached Image:

oh wow is the snails shell clear?! SWEET!! i want a few.
unfortuneatly i doubt we have that specific type round here.