snail? good or bad? found these guys all over zoas

[rams]

Sorry gang it's been a while since I've been back into zoanthids. Picked up some frags this weekend and found some (11) of these guys during dips. They are pretty hardy suckers. Even after several long dips I had to eventually pull them off with tweezer. Which then I learned they had a hard shell. They seemed to want to hang on the zoanthid stalks. I assume they are bad. Any ID suggestions? The frags received several good dips along with a soft tooth brush scrub. You never know what your gonna find during a dip. Thanks in advanced... rams

if these are common... my bad. at least you get some more reference pics to look at. I haven't had good luck searching "zoa snail" threads thus far.

 

[650-IS350]

do they look like these...

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/SwSnails/Stomatella.php
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rs/index.php
http://bb.wetwebmedia.com/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=181

Stomatella's are harmless good grazers.

 

[nvdiz]

the look like stomatellas to me. never bothered any corals and are a pretty good addition to any cuc.

 

[gnashty]

Yup, Stomatella's - very common hitchhiker. They are good for your system. Mine travel pretty quickly crossing the tank several times through the day.

 

[scuba guy ron]

they sure are stomatellas. IMO they are among the top algae grazers you could house. Mine have reproduced well in my tank.

 

[heranatomy]

+648390643 on Stomatellas...

I found one as a hitchhiker on my LR and they never did any harm.

Then, I saw my peppermint shrimp having a feast with it, and that was that, haha.

 

[ParanoidObseshn]

I had about 3 of these guys in my 5 gal nano tank, and now about 3 months later I have 20+. Always catch them doing their thing in the water.

 

[GreatReefs]

When in doubt, take it out...Or get a fish that'll eat em. Most wrasses take care of snails. Sixlines do the trick but are alittle aggressive.

 

[125galbiznotch]

ya my wrasse eats anything that hides in the rocks so if your looking to get rid of them i suggest a wrasse

 

[scuba guy ron]

When in doubt, take it out...Or get a fish that'll eat em. Most wrasses take care of snails. Sixlines do the trick but are alittle aggressive.

I dont agree. I would suggest when in doubt do what you did and post on these foums to get educated advice prior to erradication. It's responsable reefkeeping. these animals are beneficial to a reeftank.

 

[650-IS350]

stomatella's are great helpers and breed like rabbits.

 

[rams]

Thanks All, when I came across these guys the thought of them being stomatella didn't even dawn on me. I searched this forum and didn't find anything pointing to the possibility. I shouldn't have been so specific in my search. But you got to here on RC or it would have taken days. Well hopefully this serves purpose to the next reefer.

When in doubt, take it out...

I do agree with this statement. Never put anything into your system without researching it first. Easier to QT than start over. I saved a few of them just incase they were harmless.

rams