Limpets got a few questions

bill109

bill109

Active Member
hello
so about a month a go i was swithing tanks and i noticed a large lipet in my tank for quit some time. then i couldnt get him off the glass so he didnt make it through the swich
then as the tank was set up in the new 90 i saw 2 baby lipets.
what are up with these things.. they are awesome and are doing good at grazing my rock lol
anyone know much about these.?
are they a hitchhiker tht is bad or are they considered an invert tht you could buy at your lfs?
are they something that is hard to keep or do they indicate a healthy system?
last question here: i only had one from what i saw and NEVER saw the 2 new ones untill the tank change so i can only assume it reproduced. but how? there was only one in the tank and now as i stated 2 little guys!
btw they are wierd once a snail was on top of him and it was moving around like a mechanical bull with a large suction cup at the bottom and only the top moving aournd lol

thanx for taking the time to read this :joy:
-bill109
 
bill109

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by WifeofFishLvr
What's a limpet? :notsure:
Sorry for my ignorance!
ill get some pics for you
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
limpets are beneficial snails, but are a PAIN to remove.
they probably were in your rock and just grew enough to come out. i have approximately 5 of em that i can see at any given time.
 
bill109

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by renogaw
limpets are beneficial snails, but are a PAIN to remove.
they probably were in your rock and just grew enough to come out. i have approximately 5 of em that i can see at any given time.
how benificial are they.. what do they do lol?
yes i tried EVERYTHING to remove the big guy but couldnt tried everything from a icecube which froze my hand off to a playing card to pulling. and nothing. hes long gone today
will they reproduce or eventually die off.?
-bill109
 
reefkprz

reefkprz

Active Member
Some limpets actually run circuts from point A all the way around a given rock back to point A. in nature they will do this enough times to actually wear a groove in the rock over time. (just thought that it was a cool snippet of info not really practical for anything, but it must take years)
probably reproduce, as long as its not a keyhole limpet I wouldnt worry they are great algae eaters.
 
bill109

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by Bang Guy
They eat algae. If there's thick algae on a rock they will make a path like a lawnmower.
i know tht cyano isnt a agle but will they pick at tht?
 
bill109

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by reefkprZ
Some limpets actually run circuts from point A all the way around a given rock back to point A. in nature they will do this enough times to actually wear a groove in the rock over time. (just thought that it was a cool snippet of info not really practical for anything, but it must take years)
lol yeah ive heard tht b4 lol
iot someitmes come to the smae spot every few days
-bill109
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
Originally Posted by bill109
how benificial are they.. what do they do lol?
yes i tried EVERYTHING to remove the big guy but couldnt tried everything from a icecube which froze my hand off to a playing card to pulling. and nothing. hes long gone today
will they reproduce or eventually die off.?
-bill109
i read one place that if you were FAST you could get under the foot of the thing with a straight edge and pry it off, but man, i have to wait for them to move when i need to scrape my glass LOL.
i'd bet they will reproduce though. i did find some shells though in the past, i think my crabs got em.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by reefkprZ
Some limpets actually run circuts from point A all the way around a given rock back to point A. in nature they will do this enough times to actually wear a groove in the rock over time. (just thought that it was a cool snippet of info not really practical for anything, but it must take years)
probably reproduce, as long as its not a keyhole limpet I wouldnt worry they are great algae eaters.
I thought that was Chitons. Could be both?
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
Originally Posted by bill109
i know tht cyano isnt a agle but will they pick at tht?

not likely
 
bill109

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by Bang Guy
Nope.
is there anything els they do besdie act.do the same thing as the snail or are they related to the snail somehow? they have a hard back lol
 
reefkprz

reefkprz

Active Member
Originally Posted by Bang Guy
I thought that was Chitons. Could be both?
I read that so long ago when I researching limpets I may have crossed that up. I cant be positive I'll get back to you on that.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
Originally Posted by reefkprZ
probably reproduce, as long as its not a keyhole limpet I wouldnt worry they are great algae eaters.

erm... why is a keyhole limpet bad?
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by bill109
is there anything els they do besdie act.do the same thing as the snail or are they related to the snail somehow? they have a hard back lol
Queen Conch eat Cyanobacter but they get rather large, rather quickly.
I've heard that Cerith Snails can eat Cyano but I've never seen it.
Cyano indicates a problem with the system. Low waterflow, excess Phosphate, low oxygen, etc.
I'd try to identify the cause first. Until then, Cyanobacter should be fairly easy to siphon out of the tank.
 
bill109

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by Bang Guy
Queen Conch eat Cyanobacter but they get rather large, rather quickly.
I've heard that Cerith Snails can eat Cyano but I've never seen it.
Cyano indicates a problem with the system. Low waterflow, excess Phosphate, low oxygen, etc.
I'd try to identify the cause first. Until then, Cyanobacter should be fairly easy to siphon out of the tank.
its a water movement problem for sure.
im working on adding anohter ph to the tank.
i gotta spend 32 vs 16 here and i fund everything mself at age 16 so it can be tough at times.
-bill109
 
lpardshark

lpardshark

Member
I have had limpets in my tank since day 1
Yesterday when I got home from work, found one of them on the substrate, with a green jelly sac coming out of it.I don't know if it's giving birth, or dying. If it's the latter don't want to disturb it...Has anyone else ever experienced this happening??????????
 
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