Turbo Snail Deaths

[KlassicKrab]

Greetings, I bought 15 turbo snails just four days ago. The snails are dying. I come home and find them upside down. There is no traces of ammonia, nitrite or nitrate. My water parameters are pretty much in check. I don't know why my snails are dying. I have hermit crabs and emerald crabs also. None of the crabs are dead but the snail population is diminishing quickly. Whats wrong?

 

[jdieck]

Could have been transport, improper acclimation to new salinity, sickness or something in your water column (Usually As or Cu)

 

[kbecker]

You could have a preditory flatworms like I have in my tank. The worms are very flat with a brown mottled skin and about .5-1" wide and 2" long. Everytime I put a snail in the tank, they come out of the cracks and attack the snails. They sometimes spit mucas at the snail to trap it or they swarm over the snail and attack it from underneath. Once it starts attacking the snail will tuck in it's shell. Then the flatworm begins to slowly work it's way under the operculm (the snail's hard trap door thing) and consume it.

 

[KlassicKrab]

Thanks for the replies. It just seems that they die because they fall off the glass or rocks and land on their backs, unable to right themselves up.

 

[jdieck]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8623258#post8623258 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by KlassicKrab
Thanks for the replies. It just seems that they die because they fall off the glass or rocks and land on their backs, unable to right themselves up.

Tha is strange, Usually Mexican Turbos can right themselves. The ones with trouble to do so are Astreas and Trochus.

 

[racrumrine]

Trochus can turn themselves over. Astraeas cannot.

Best of luck,

Roy

 

[cchoffman]

Not to threadjack, but kbecker, take a look at my gallery and tell me if I have the same thing you do. It sounds just like mine. What have you done to get rid of them?

 

[kbecker]

Yup those are exactly the devils I am plagued with. I pm'ed you my experiances trying to rid myself of them. In a nutshell, I am unable to starve them or capture them effectivly. I 've accepted defeat and have only hermits in my tank now.

 

[racrumrine]

Wow. Great pictures.

You should send a copy of your pictures and description of it's behavior with snails to Melev for his ID pages http://melevsreef.com/id/flatworm.html

He talks about a similar looking flatworm eating clams; but, nothing about it eating snails.

Best of luck,

Roy

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8639240#post8639240 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cchoffman
Not to threadjack, but kbecker, take a look at my gallery and tell me if I have the same thing you do. It sounds just like mine. What have you done to get rid of them?

 

[650-IS350]

I had one of those bastards in my tank... I crushed the hell out of him in tongs but was not able to get his carcas....

 

[cchoffman]

from experience, if you have one you have more...

Update on behavior, they will also take any hermit crabs they can get to. These are nasty little S.O.B.'s.

 

[650-IS350]

Last time I saw it was 1 month or 2 ago.. havent seen some since then.. thankfully maybe my sixline has been eating em' since he is pretty plump...

Also had a red coris juvi' working in the tank for about a month as well...