Help with Snail Breeding

[tideshark]

I have a 20 long sump under my 75 gallon tank and I am looking to breed snails in it that I can feed here and there to my puffers in the tank above. Does anyone have any tips on breeding saltwater snails? Which snails are the easiest to do this with? From what I know with freshwater you just put the snails in there and before you know it you have a snail problem, is this pretty much the same with saltwater? Appreciate any feedback!

 

[pagojoe]

It's not quite that simple, mostly because lots of the marine snails have planktonic stages where the larvae float in the water for a few hours to a few weeks, then settle out to (hopefully) land in a spot where they can feed and grow. Mostly the eggs or larvae get eaten or filtered out in marine aquaria, although direct developers or species with very short pelagic periods may have some success in reproducing. There's a group of people working on captive breeding of snails and other "desirable" marine inverts right now. Lots to read on their website, or you can ask for help there:

http://www2.reefstewardshipfoundation.org/

Cheers,



Don

 

[jestersix]

One that I've had good luck with is the Dove Shell aka Nano Conch (Euplica versicolor ). I have them breeding in all of my tanks and they multiply fairly quickly - I use them to feed a couple of carnivorous snails I keep...Not very big but easy to raise. Might be good for small puffers.