Ramshorm snails.. give me info !

[bsmith]

ok i am getting some of these little guys, i hear they bread A LOT. so i am setting up an african cichlid tank, am i able to put them in the same tank and have them be alright or will they be food ? thanks !

Also - i have an apple snail in a tank by itself, what do i feed it ? and when i get the ramshorn they will be housed together until the other tank has cycled, what do i feed them all, ? thanks

[MyraVan]

Sorry this is such a late reply... I don't check this forum very often.

I don't have any experience with cichlids, but I think it quite likely that they would eat the ramshorns, at least the baby ones. My rosy barbs eat all the baby ramshorns that come in on the plants, and cichlids are alot more aggressive that the rosys. As for adult ramshorns, I don't have any specific info, but many cichlids are well-known snail-eaters, so they might even manage the adults.

For feeding apple snails, mine eat fish food (sinking tablets, unfrozen bloodworms, flakes that have floated to the bottom). I am concerned about them having enough calcium for their shells, so I'm buying crab food and shrimp pellets for them. These latter foods have lots of calcium. You should also offer them a variety of veggies, especially cucumber, green beans, etc. I haven't been able to get mine to eat any of that, but there's plenty of nice nutritious algae for them in the tank, and this morning I saw one of them eating the floating duckweed!

[Mr Aquarium]

Apple snails will eat anything that is a plant, Lettus is another thing they really eat the heck out of.

Far as snails ina cichlid tank, I think it;s in a cichlids nature to eat um, Oscars will in no time, kribs will as well, not tried any in the con tank thought but they wasted a crawdad inside 90 seconds....

[blixem]

Also depends on your water if you ask me... I have soft water from the tap, and with peat filtration I keep it very soft. my Ramshorns don't seem to breed that readily, then again maybe they do and the water is too soft for too many of the babies to develop good shells before my fish get to them.

I don't have any fish dedicated to snail eating (e.g. loaches or puffers).

[MyraVan]

Originally Posted by Mr Aquarium

Apple snails will eat anything that is a plant

Depends on the kind of apple snail. Pomacea canaliculata are voracious plant eaters, Pomacea bridgesii won't eat plants. Well, they're not supposed to eat plants, but my purple one is eating the duckweed! Not that I mind this: it grows much faster than she can eat it.

[ijedic]

Originally Posted by bsmith

ok i am getting some of these little guys, i hear they bread A LOT. so i am setting up an african cichlid tank, am i able to put them in the same tank and have them be alright or will they be food ? thanks !

Also - i have an apple snail in a tank by itself, what do i feed it ? and when i get the ramshorn they will be housed together until the other tank has cycled, what do i feed them all, ? thanks

Are you getting Marissa (Giant Columbian Ramshorn) or are you getting Planorbid (red or brown ramshorn often sold as puffer or loach food)?

Marissa get quite large, they have to have a male and a female to make babies. The eggs are lain in a clear jelly mass on plant life, decor, or the glass. They usually are mature when they reach the size of a quarter.

Planorbids don't get that big, and are hermaphrodites. I've got some that are the size of an m&m that are already laying eggs. They are a lot more like rabbits than the marissa are.

About feeding your snails, there are many different things, and variety is good for them. I use Ken's Fish earthworm pellets, Ken's Fish Spirulina pellets, Ken's Fish brine shrimp pellets, frozen bloodworms, weekend feeders (for additional calcium), romaine lettuce, flakes, cucumbers, and zucchini.

Snails are a lot like cows, they are always grazing on something, which means they are constantly releasing waste. Make sure to keep an eye on your water conditions. I keep my snails that don't eat plants (Pomacea Bridgesii and Asolene Spixi) in my planted tanks. The plants help by using up the snail waste.

[ijedic]

Originally Posted by MyraVan

Depends on the kind of apple snail. Pomacea canaliculata are voracious plant eaters, Pomacea bridgesii won't eat plants. Well, they're not supposed to eat plants, but my purple one is eating the duckweed! Not that I mind this: it grows much faster than she can eat it.

Duckweed, often referred to as snail candy lol! I think all snails love that stuff! That's the one plant that I can't keep long in a bridgesii/spixi tank!