overanalyzer
Active Member
All I’ve done a bunch of research on the Nassarius Snails – especially since many questions have been raised I figured I would toss this info out and if the sharks find it useful they can make it the: Invertebrate of the Week – Critter of the week or something….
The genus of Nassarius is an extremely large genus with distribution around the globe. Ron Shimek wrote and article entitled “Nassarius Snails as Scavengers in the Reef Aquaria” and since publication of that article the gathering and growth of use of the Nassarius Snails in the reef setting has exploded in popularity.
The Nassarius Snail grows to ½ to ¾ to an inch long – depending upon who you believe. They will bury themselves in the upper level of your DSB and stick out their snout (or breathing tube) and wait. They will feed on dead matter or decaying matter and/or excess fish food. They are not Herbivores. Many people claim they are also perfect for cleaning out decaying matter that may be hidden or difficult for other critters to reach because of the location of the decaying material (like in the LR or other hard to reach areas).
They’ll stick their snout out of the sand bed and use it for three things:
1. To move water, and thus oxygen, down into their shells to help with breathing
2. Use it as their “nose” to sniff out the dead or dying food.
3. Provide a cool looking little tube sticking up through your sand bed
Some items you need to know.
All Nassarius Snails will have a re-curved shell. I will post a picture with explanation of the shell which was originally published in Ron Shimek’s article. If it does not have a re-curved shell and is being sold as a Nassarius Snail then avoid it as it could be a predatory snail which will cause problems. It could also be a black shelled Nassarius which is used to lower temperatures associated with the San Francisco Bay area and will die if kept in a tank much above the 75 Degree mark.
The Snails you are looking for are the Nassarius Vibex which come from the Florida/Caribbean area.
The Nassarius does NOT eat algae on the sand bed, rather they keep the bed stirred up thus keep it from getting growth on the DSB.
The Nassarius Snails will not dig down very deeply into your DSB – just the first ¾ to 1 inch of it.
Many people use these critters to replace hermit crabs, but after asking around the Nassarius Snails tend to stay on your sand bed so you need some rock cleaners as well.
The general recommendation is 1 per gallon if you are replacing hermits.
CREDITS Ron Shimek’s article referenced above, the fine folks at several differing reef websites, and google images.
Here is a life size picture of one:
The genus of Nassarius is an extremely large genus with distribution around the globe. Ron Shimek wrote and article entitled “Nassarius Snails as Scavengers in the Reef Aquaria” and since publication of that article the gathering and growth of use of the Nassarius Snails in the reef setting has exploded in popularity.
The Nassarius Snail grows to ½ to ¾ to an inch long – depending upon who you believe. They will bury themselves in the upper level of your DSB and stick out their snout (or breathing tube) and wait. They will feed on dead matter or decaying matter and/or excess fish food. They are not Herbivores. Many people claim they are also perfect for cleaning out decaying matter that may be hidden or difficult for other critters to reach because of the location of the decaying material (like in the LR or other hard to reach areas).
They’ll stick their snout out of the sand bed and use it for three things:
1. To move water, and thus oxygen, down into their shells to help with breathing
2. Use it as their “nose” to sniff out the dead or dying food.
3. Provide a cool looking little tube sticking up through your sand bed
Some items you need to know.
All Nassarius Snails will have a re-curved shell. I will post a picture with explanation of the shell which was originally published in Ron Shimek’s article. If it does not have a re-curved shell and is being sold as a Nassarius Snail then avoid it as it could be a predatory snail which will cause problems. It could also be a black shelled Nassarius which is used to lower temperatures associated with the San Francisco Bay area and will die if kept in a tank much above the 75 Degree mark.
The Snails you are looking for are the Nassarius Vibex which come from the Florida/Caribbean area.
The Nassarius does NOT eat algae on the sand bed, rather they keep the bed stirred up thus keep it from getting growth on the DSB.
The Nassarius Snails will not dig down very deeply into your DSB – just the first ¾ to 1 inch of it.
Many people use these critters to replace hermit crabs, but after asking around the Nassarius Snails tend to stay on your sand bed so you need some rock cleaners as well.
The general recommendation is 1 per gallon if you are replacing hermits.
CREDITS Ron Shimek’s article referenced above, the fine folks at several differing reef websites, and google images.
Here is a life size picture of one:
