Snails?

[firebellytoadsx4]

So i've upgraded my frogs setup a bit and added some more plants.. after a hard and thorough clean of the water portion the other day, i noticed that there was quiet a large build up of algae in the tank.. at least on the waterfall portion. would snails be safe to put in with the toads? also would the toads try and eat them and would this help keep the algae blooms down?

[Rocko]

Depending on the type of snail, yes it will help, but help being the operative word. I've kept 3 types of snails with fire bellies, mystery snails, ramshorn, and malaysian trumpets. I would recommend the trumpets as being the best consumers for algae while also not eating anything planted in the tank. Further, the trumpets burrow through substrate and therefore help to aerate plant roots which can be a benefit. My toads have never attempted to eat the snails I have kept in the tank, but they do have a habit of using the large ones as climbing posts or food rests. That being said, snails are not the best algae eaters in the world. While they can the situation, they won't eliminate it. You might consider adding another algae eating fish, pleco, otto etc to improve things further. I am currently investigating the usefulness of an algae shrimp in my tank to how well that works.

[Sugar]

Hi,

I have had great success using snail to maintain algal populations in my tanks. My axolotl eats them occasionally but my toads aren't interested.

I use common pond snails instead of ramshorn snails because the latter grow large enough that I think ingestion might produce an impaction. But the common pond snails stay fairly small. Also, they are hermaphrodites and reproduce prolifically, so if a few get eaten it's not a big deal. And if you have too many, floating some prewashed organic romaine lettuce or spinach attracts them and you can just pull them out in a bunch. My tanks are planted and the snails seem to be attracted only to grasses.

I am currently investigating the usefulness of an algae shrimp in my tank to how well that works.

I read somewhere, i think on the Caudata.org forums, and have heard from friends, that ghost shrimp are handy because when more than just a few individuals are added, some invariably manage to escape being eaten by the tank captives.

[firebellytoadsx4]

Hi,

I have had great success using snail to maintain algal populations in my tanks. My axolotl eats them occasionally but my toads aren't interested.

I use common pond snails instead of ramshorn snails because the latter grow large enough that I think ingestion might produce an impaction. But the common pond snails stay fairly small. Also, they are hermaphrodites and reproduce prolifically, so if a few get eaten it's not a big deal. And if you have too many, floating some prewashed organic romaine lettuce or spinach attracts them and you can just pull them out in a bunch. My tanks are planted and the snails seem to be attracted only to grasses.



I read somewhere, i think on the Caudata.org forums, and have heard from friends, that ghost shrimp are handy because when more than just a few individuals are added, some invariably manage to escape being eaten by the tank captives.

Oh man, really hard to read your post with that big spider there.. huge arachnophobia :P

[ARMS87]

I wish my FBTs would eat snails. I can't move for Ramshorns!