The slow tiring death of a turbo snail...

[J2FcM]

Just wondering if anyone might be able to point out some potential problems that may've come up with my late Mexican Turbo Snail.

Basically, when I bought him, roughly 6-7 months ago; he went on a algae rampage, which was perfect since I had a whole bunch of that nasty back wall algae, and all over the live rocks.

Now, slowly, over these 6 months, he's backed off, and kinda kept to the back wall and the front of the tank... this behavior built more and more momentum, until the past 2-3 weeks.

He would barely travel throughout the tank, he would never touch the live rock, and in fact I think near the end, he would move maybe inches every day... or I would find him upside down as if he obviously fell off the glass of the tank.

I have kept the water quality high, and the tank is 29 gal housing a Dwarf Lion + Tomato Clown + Blue Damsel + now (only in the past 2 weeks) a young Peacock Mantis (no he never attacked or showed a single bit of interest in the Snail, and the snails behavior just progressed\digressed).

Now I have a huge alage bloom; and nothing to clean it!... any help as to what may've gotten the poor snail?
(also - anyways to stop this damn algae bloom!)

 

[Vegas.]

Mantis, old age + many other possibility's.......... I've have my turbo for 2 years and he went missing for 2 days..... I found him on the floor behind my tank! I put him back in and he's been perfectly healthy for the past year.

 

[J2FcM]

hmmmm, I just hope I dont have a slow death tank for all inverts. because I did haev a tiny hermit that would go back n forh from a huge shell to a small shell die just the same way (before the Mantis).
I just wish I could narrow it down - for the sake of future inhabitants. Well, mostly for the current resident Mantis, since thats where my passion lies. But she was good to the snail, I promise. bwahaha

 

[velvetelvis]

I've read that these snails are actually a temperate species and thus end up eventually dying in typical (that is, warm) reef tanks, as the temperatures are just too high for them.

 

[Vegas.]

I've read that these snails are actually a temperate species and thus end up eventually dying in typical (that is, warm) reef tanks, as the temperatures are just too high for them.

Not sure where you read that..... Margaritas are temperate though.

 

[Salamander]

I've often seen margarita snails sold as turbo snails.

 

[whedbee]

Did you buy the tank new or used? (Possible copper contamination?)

 

[DJREEF]

Not sure where you read that..... Margaritas are temperate though.

Odd, the margaritas I have are bullets at 83 degrees. I'm thinking they're not as 'temperate' as we've been lead to believe. To the OP - are you dosing calcium and buffer to your system. Snails gotta have it just like corals do or they can't lay down new shell.

DJ

 

[J2FcM]

The tank was new and it is a year old. But never toyed with calcium or buffer... temperature is kept at 78 to 80.

Also there has been an urchin living in; and 2 different mantis shrimps for probably nine months of the tanks year old life.




Additionally; I bought another snail to have another go... once he entered the tank blew some bubbles out of the shell crawled the rock awkwardly and then sort of covered up. I thought this was bizarre, and the next day I gave him a little poke on that piece of shell attached to his flesh that covers up the main portion of his shell... and he twitched so okay he was still alive.

And two days later he hadnt moved... maybe three days later... I decided to pick him up and literally his entire insides turned into a black liquid sealed in by his little protective shell cover. So, he basically dissolved inside of his own shell into a black goop...........

 

[J2FcM]

Did some water test and talked to someone I know;

they suggested the nitrates for sure, as well as lowish PH; mine was actually 7.4... prolly due to my fresh water top offs right?

So I did a water change, and scrubbed off as much as I could of the algae, and got another Turbo, and a Pyramid Snail as well......... my final snail test. Now the PH and Nitrates are higher/lower...