Why aren't stomatella snails more popular

[Frogmanx82]

You see one zipping along the top of the water line.

They are pretty good size, why aren't they ever sold? I have two good size ones and they seem to be thriving.

 

[PTubman]

i don,t know why they arent more popular. they are very hardy great at cleaning and reproduce easy in an aquarium. i have dozens in my tank

 

[fox2589]

i believe the reason there not very popular is because you can have 1000 one day and none the next..-drew

 

[Frogmanx82]

Why none the next?

 

[mcarroll]

I think it's a purely practical problem with collection.

They're quite difficult even to remove from glass without them dropping the back of their foot or worse. Forget trying to pick them out of rocks.

Makes them one of the most welcome hitchhikers tho.

-Matt

 

[Grassroots]

They seem to through cycles in my tank. One month I have hundreds the next maybe one or two lol.

 

[goochesfish]

Maybe they just hide.

 

[stanlalee]

what exactly do you mean by more popular? I dont think anyone buys them because they are such common hitch hikers with live rock almost anybody with live rock has them. like most things food supply and predation dictates their numbers.

 

[ludnix]

Too common of a hitch hiker to be sold. They do a good job of eating most algae, but they won't go for the really thick green stuff. I prefer to let the stomatellas do the most of the work and then 1 or 2 turbos take care of the remaining thicker algaes.

 

[cody6766]

same here. I also have tons of collestina (something like that) snails that cruise the tank. Gotta love free CUC

 

[AquaticFins]

I think mcarroll is right on the money. Not the easiest animal in the world to collect and sell.

My favourite clean-up-crew member by far, however.

 

[tylorarm]

Mine were all eaten by my checkerboard wrasse. Maybe fish predation is an issue?

 

[seapug]

yeah, predation is an issue. I've had shrimp wipe out entire populations of them. They tend to breed like mad in tanks. A couple months after setting up my refugium I noticed hundreds of new baby stomatellas in both my fuge and display.

I agree with the notion that they are too common to sell. I did see a ziplock bag of about 500 of them for sale at a frag swap for $5.

 

[mcarroll]

I did see a ziplock bag of about 500 of them for sale at a frag swap for $5.

I either pitty the fool who had to pick 500 stomatellas for that bag, or I probably really don't want to know the environment they were raised in. :idea:

-Matt

 

[Frogmanx82]

What kind of shrimp eats stomatella snails? I just got a blood shrimp.

 

[MAKOOKAM]

What kind of shrimp eats stomatella snails? I just got a blood shrimp.

my blood doesnt seem to bother them

 

[BeanMachine]

Anyone ever see their stomatella's stand up like mir cats? Mine seem to do that all the time and its pretty funny to watch.

 

[mcarroll]

That's usually when they are releasing gametes into the water to mate. It'll look like a little white cloud if you see the act itself.

Never heard of others besides Stomatellas doing it before, but I've actually seen my gigantic turbo snails do that (clouds and all) more than once as well.

-Matt

 

[dangros]

my cleaner shrimp doesnt seem to give mine any problems.

 

[las]

I'd like to buy some since i don't have any.... Any idea where I can find them?