Snails keep dying in my tank

[greddy1]

Hey guys,
I've just about had it with snails as cleaner crews. It doesn't matter if they are astrea, nassarius, Fighting Conch etc all dead all the time within 24 hours and longer but rarely more than a week. this has been going on for months and never fails. There is plenty of algae and other crap in the tank for feed. The only thing I can come up with is that the few remaining blue hermit crabs that are left in the tank might be taking them out since I eventually see them with the shells but would they take out all the snails? It's a 70 gallon tank with lots of places for them to stroll so any help would be appreciated.

 

[kone77]

Im having the same exact issue with my snails this is the third batch im on now all my tank water perimeters are correct temp 79-81 ammonia 0 nitrate low salinity 1.026 calcium 460 ph 8.20 -8.40 and my zoanthids are closed up to they have not opened after the first day i have no fish and all my hermite crabs are fine

 

[sedor]

Is the tank second hand? Sounds like it could be copper that was leached into either your live rock or in some cases in used tanks (especially ones that have been used in FW setups) copper can leach into the silicone. It doesn't take much to wipe out inverts with copper. I'd suggest getting a cheap API copper test at your LFS and at least rule that option out. My only other though could be really high nitrates.

 

[kone77]

i bought the tank brand new at thatfishplace in Lancaster pa its a 55gal oceanic bow front ill get a copper test kit and test for that thanks

 

[kyrin01]

I would second copper.

Are you acclimating them properly? Ph, salinity, temp shock can kill inverts just as fast as fish.

 

[kone77]

ok i bought a copper kit-nitrate kit-alkalinity-kh kit-nitrite kit-phosphate kit-all made buy salifert this is all i should need cause i have a pH probe to monitor my ph and a ammonia monitor hanging in my tank if this doesn't work i give up seriously!!!

 

[Frogmanx82]

I have heard bad things about the blue leg hermits once they have a taste for snail. Do you have trouble with shrimp. They have the same copper sensitivity.

 

[EMUReef]

I have heard bad things about the blue leg hermits once they have a taste for snail. Do you have trouble with shrimp. They have the same copper sensitivity.

my blue legs and red legs square off in my tank and its kinda like a scene from braveheart.

My snails are idiots, one day their fine the next there stranded on their backs and i have to flip them over, if i dont, the blue legs come along and reclaim the shell as their own, eating whoever is inside.

i have empty shells scattered all over my tank, from 12 snails i think all of 2 are left, in fact i dont think any are, i think its time to get some more and pick up some mex. turbo snails.

so it might be your hermits.

 

[gmatt]

You might try looking around in your tank at night (red flashlight helps). After the lights go out.

This was the source for my missing snails!

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1761976

 

[saltydog64]

Shells for H Crab

Shells for H Crab

Greddy1.....

If your still having issues w/your snails......what I would consider is getting some empty shells for your H carbs as they could be the source of your problem and I doubt it was Cu as all your inverts would be toast by now...oh ya boil the empty shells just to be safe before using them..

and post your N03 results, u said "low" but what is that....

just my $0.02

Dick

 

[Salamander]

Another possibility is a worm called Oenone fulgida. They are snail hunters and I think more common in our tanks than people realize.

They are very hard to see. They only come out at night but are lightning fast when they feel any vibration as you approach the tank.

While hard to spot there are signs. If you see a blob of clear mucus on the dead snail or shell....you likely have Oenone worms. They secrete a sedating mucus on their prey before they devour it.

 

[Cassidy1016]

I have been having the same problem. I have a clown fish, yellowheaded sleeper goby and a foxface along with a cleaner shrimp. It doesn't matter what type of snail I put in the tank they last about three weeks maybe a month and a half and then die. I am ready to give up on snails! Everything else all my corals and fish ect are doing great and out tank has been up for a little more than a year now. I just don't understand!!

 

[rlwreefer]

I have the same issue too. My mexican turbo snails just don't make it very long. I have a cleaner shrimp and two peppermint shrimps that have been around a while (cleaner for a year, peppermints for 6 months). They seem to start loosing their stickyness after a few weeks, keep falling off rocks and glass, then they just shrivel up and die. What could be causing this?

 

[claire481]

I have only recently soved my mystery of the dying snails and it may or may not be the answer for everyone. I learned that certain shrimps and fish (coral banded and damels in my case) nip at the antennae of the snails until they just cant stand anymore abuse and, withdrawing into their shells, slowly die, only to be scavenged very quickly by crabs etc. I exchanged those pests with more docile tank mates and now my snails live long, happy lives.

 

[tarpon12]

Guys, how are you acclimating them? I had the exact same problem, my parameters were great but they didnt last more than a week. Since I have been drip acclimating them, I havent lost one snail.