Hitchhiking Snail.

[soritan]

My boss gave me a looooong bit of Anacharis today -- so long, it doesn't actually fit into the bowl with the fish. I just wound one into the bowl, to see how it'd fit, and it practically crowded out my Furin... Oo I'll have to figure out what to do with it. I wonder if it's amiable to being cut in half (or more like, 4ths... it's that long....). I'm keeping it in the bowl momentarily, while I'm waiting for some water to be ready for my usual water change. I'll pull Furin out and leave the Anacharis behind until I figure out what to do with it....

This was hours ago. During that time, I rather lazily let the ziplock bag it was in fall to the floor while I busied myself working on other projects. I've been pacing and occasionally stepping on it, and felt under my foot something pebble-like.... Just a few minutes ago, I finally picked up the bag to place into the trash can, when lo and behold, inside the ziplock bag was a snail. There's less than a half inch of water in there, but since the bag's been sealed, he's got something to live in. Apparently, being stepped on three times didn't phase him. Or else he's wounded and I can't see it.

I *think* he's an apple snail.

Anyways, he comes from a much bigger aquarium than my little bowls, and the 10gallon I'm working on probably won't be ready for occupants for at least another 2-3 weeks, while I scrounge up money for a heater and a proper filteration unit.

So, the reason why I'm posting here is... do you think I should even try and keep him? I don't mean toss him in the trash, I mean, should I try and give him back to the lady who gave me the Anacharis? I've read on here a couple times, that snails are big waste producers, and I'm not sure I want to introduce something like that into my betta bowls.

Can this little snail live with me and my bettas? Is it necessarily desirable, considering that they live in 1g bowls at the moment?

 

[jollysue]

I use snails and am increasing my variety. Wouldn't count on aquiring an apple. There is an invertebrate forum. Snails clean the algae, eat dead leaves, etc, in the tank and are a big help with waste food cleanup. I have come to love the little guys. People love then or hate them.

You can cut the anacharis in sections, float it or plant it. I's a great little plant.

 

[Betta*b*Happy!]

Lots and lots of snail poo!

Depending on what type they are they will breed like mad too, and the iddy bitty tiny ones are easy to miss. I keep all mine seperate. Keep an eye out for what looks like sir bubbles on the side of the tank. Thems snail eggs!

 

[Flashfire]

I once kept apple snails to eat leftover fry food. I noticed that hey are alot more intellegent than we think they are, the snails learnt how to eat fry food off of the top of the water's surface. The would use their foot like a funnel to suck the food off the surface with their slime, it was weird seeing molusks learn to to something so intellegent in only three days. The snails were nice to have to clean up, even if they did steal the baby bettas food! Two of the three snails laid eggs eventually, one of them did it a couple times. From what I've heard, unlike most snail species which are hermaphrodites they are gonochoristic (they have both male and female) they lay eggs in calcerous pouches above the water line and have both lungs and gills. If you have apple snails, you will notice them using a long tubular organ called a siphon which is used to breath air, they stick it out of the water and suck air into their lungs.

 

[JackDemp528]

If it's a tiny pond snail, look out, one turns in to twenty, which tunrs into one hundred, which turns into 400. So be careful. But in a bowl you can just take everything out and put very hot woter on it and it kills them.

 

[soritan]

Well. I think I'll return him to his rightful owner. I don't think I'm equipt to handle another life form in this room. *laugh* .... I sold my crowntail about a week ago to a friend, because I couldn't keep up with my two fish, let alone a third. I'm not butch enough for it. (why does that make me embarressed? ) I just didn't have the bowls to keep him, or the money to buy the bowls, or the ability to keep up with that frequency of water changes in three of them at the same time. I don't know how you all do it.

After the tank is established, if I've still the yen for it, I'll get one (snail). I don't think I've ever read of an issue with snails in a 10 gallon tank with bettas. It's in the bowl environment that'd give me pause.

 

[jollysue]

Snails multiply according to the availability of food. They won't over multiply if you don't over feed. If there's too much food, it's a good thing to have snails to eat the excess, IMO, but then they will multiply faster.

Check the invertebrate forum.

 

[jollysue]

You're a nice person. If it is an apple, I'll take it/him/her.