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I picked up three Golden Mysteries yesterday at the LFS in hopes of having them do a bit of cleaning work on my broadleafed plants, with regard to some algae.

Is there anything specific I ought to know about these lil critters? I acclimated them as I would have acclimated new fish, hanging their bag in the tank, dripping tank water in slowly over time, etc. Then I just netted them into the tank, gently setting them on the bottom so as not to crack a shell...

Should I be concerned with feeding them specificly? They are really great looking snails!

Hi Scott- I was just reading about these snails after reading your post, cause snails seem to be a popular subject lately & I was considering getting one or two for my tanks, if I ever saw them. But I read on this site, in profiles, crustaceans, that you should have a well covered tank so they don't escape & a low water line for them to breathe air. So that eliminates them for me. Also it said they eat flakes, algae tablets & dead plant matter, as well as algae on things. I imagine they would probably eat most anything that you feed your fish, so I wouldn't worry about it.

I wouldn't be feeding algae tablets though till they clean up your plants first. Let us know what kind of a job they do. Hopefully, you won't have to fire them.

I have one in my guppy tank, and 3 in my mbuna tank.

They are soooooo low maintenance its ridiculous. You just drop them in, and let 'em go.

I have had the one in my guppy tank for almost a year now, and he's a decent size and he keeps my algae growth controlled (its a small 14 G tank).

My 3 in the mbuna tank are in there just to help out, they eat the algae on the glass - but its a 72G tank so they can't be everywhere.

I stand by them.....easy to keep, they get rid of algae, decaying plant matter, and don't reproduce like - well like snails?? And best of all - they don't attack or eat healthy plants - they actually help keep the algae off of my plants.

They do go above the water line, but they usually just hang out for a bit, catch some air, and then get right back to business. You don't need a low water line, just a half an inch so they can extend thier lung hose (technical term?) to get the air.

You can get some really cool variations too - I have 3 that are golden brown, but have a spiraling black hash-mark pattern. And my LFS right now has these light blue shelled snails - they look like some alien Sci-Fi snail - really cool - I might grab 2 for my mbuna tank.

So no worries with these guys - definitely value added to the tank.

72G Bowfront. 1 Sunshine Peacock, 2 Yellow Labs, 1 Ps. Elongatus, 1 Blue Ahli, 1 Red Kadanga, 1 Mel. Exasperatus, 1 metriaclima emmiltos, 1 Ancistrus.

14.5G 4 Neon Tetras.

mine are definitely bright gold... one has moved round the tank, the other tow are pretty much where I placed them yesterday... Is that something to be alarmed with??

I am hoping they clean my plants, and rid my tank of diatoms and some of the thin algae type fuzz...

they might not eat the brown diatoms... but they will definatly eat any dead plant/animal matter... i missed the dead of one of my platties this last weekend and i found my 3 apple/mystery sanils devouring the body. they do require hard water (as the calciums help build their shells) and also make sure there are no escape opportunities, but if the do escape they can live out of water for a couple of hours (once had one out of water over night and woke up dropped it in the tank and it came out and started up again... if you have alot of algae on your plants' leaves you might just want to wipe them off... but the snails will definatly help with most stuff. also they will eat anything so just drop a few algae pellets/wafers in or just over feed the fish alittle bit and you will be fine...



\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

Don't worry if they don't move right away - sometimes it can take them a couple of days to get acclimated to the tank.

BUT - be cautious as well, if you see the 'trap door' start to sink into the shell, you can probably bet that the snail is dying. I had that happen and was able to exchange it at my LFS. Also, if the trap door is partially open, give it a tap or poke and see if the snail recoils - if so its still got a chance, if it doesn't move - take it back.

Keep your eyes on them for now.

72G Bowfront. 1 Sunshine Peacock, 2 Yellow Labs, 1 Ps. Elongatus, 1 Blue Ahli, 1 Red Kadanga, 1 Mel. Exasperatus, 1 metriaclima emmiltos, 1 Ancistrus.

14.5G 4 Neon Tetras.

well, the two didnt make it, so I traded their carcasses in for newbies... hopefully these lil guys will do better


I'll update! The one I got Sunday is alive and well... Hopefully these two will be fine also!

Wow......I didn't know those snails were so sensitive!
The pest snails I have in my tanks sure aren't sensitive!
I wish you better luck with the new ones!

You need a low water line only if you want to breed them, they lay their eggs out of the water, on the aquarium wall or in the lit. If they can lay them on the glass they will, and there it is easy to watch for them.
you definetly need a covered tank if you don't want them to say hello to you from the floor of your livingroom

along with the covered tank make sure there are no gaps in the cover that they might be able to squeeze throught... also a low water line is key for their survival as if you have a low oxygen concentration in the tank they will breathe from the surface... alothe thing is they need calcium additives or hard water... this will help their shells to grow strong and keep them much safer...

good luck with the new ones...
and sorry about the deceased ones...

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"