Pyramid snails in on my Astrea...Clam???

[adeocampo]

Hi,


I just found two big pyramid snails attached to it's own Astrea snail. I also have a Crocea, and I don't see any of those blood suckers, but what can I do to prevent a possible outbreak of Pyramid snails into my tank. I found two of the suckers on the glass of my tank, and quickly pulled them out. What do the eggs look like?

I also noticed that my Clam seems less responsive and his intake hole seems a bit wider, possibly "Gaping", and his color in the middle has is whiteish. Any advice anyone? Thanks..


Alex

 

[danmar26]

Alex, Pyramid snails are usually very small, about the size of a grain of rice or smaller and white in color.Their eggs look like a mass of clear jelly.If possible remove the clam and check under by its byssal gland.I would remove the astreas to a quaranteen tank and inspect them.Besides manual removal, you could try adding a six line wrasse.Hope this helps.-----Ralph

 

[Peabody]

YOu need to check in the middle of the night. Take the clam out, and check every squar inch of him super-carefully, especially around the byssal opening and within the scutes. Removing the astreas woul dbe a good idea too.

Best of luck...keep us posted!

 

[adeocampo]

Hey guys,


Thanks for the reply. when I get home tonight I'll check under the clam for those suckers. Also, the "pyramid snails" that were on my Astreas were not white and there were bigger than a grain of rice.


Alex

 

[Travis]

Are you sure they were pyramidellid snails? I have never heard of one being larger than a grain of rice. I've had these in my tank before and they were so small the untrained eye would not even know they were there. If they are pyramidellid snails I wouldn't worry too much since they are on your snails. IIRC, the species that feeds on snails is different from the species that feeds on clams.

 

[eddi]

Dos anyone have a picture, or a link where I can see what they look like?


Thanks,

Eddi

 

[Charlie Davidson]

me too!

me too!

I also would like to find a picture. I found some small snails on my astrea's. they look like baby cernth snails. or rice grains.

 

[AQUAN8TOR]

Travis, I have to disagree with you about the possibility of these snails transferring or substituting their normal or supposed only parasite host. I have personally witnessed an outbreak go from clam to snail, then to all other snails in the aquarium, regardless of type; astrea, tectus, trochus, cerith, nerite, etc, all originating from the same species from a captive propagated derasa clam. p.m. me or email me for further details. I thought the same thing until I witnessed the little bastards actually climb from the clam to a snail. I must have missed a few, for in no time, there were HUNDREDS all over my snails, all types. I did inspect, collect, and compare from each snail type, etc. They were all the same species. just thought you might want to know. weird things happen over time under closed conditions. It has been said that Acropora formosa corals that have been through successive generations of fragging and trade/transfering between tanks cannot be recognized as the same species, even though they started out from the same original piece (read that in the Borneman Aquarium Corals book.)

 

[AQUAN8TOR]

p.s. the eggs look like a clear gelatinous mass with tiny bubbles in it(the larvae themselves)