Toxic Levels

mony97

mony97

Member
So I know the basics any ammonia is toxic to fish same with trites, and for corals trates can be fatal as well. But my question is what can be toxic to a nassarius snail? I found one dead this morning in my tank, it look like he had just simply fallen over? I just did a water change yesterday and before changing the water my ammonia, trites, trates, and pH were all perfect so I dont think this to be the cause.. All of my other snails seem to be doing fine but were hidding? Is there something that I am not testing for that may have caused this? Dont much care that the snail died just curious and want to make sure what ever this is wont effect my fish..
Thanks
 
mony97

mony97

Member
Yeah, but my ammonia was at zero just a few hous before my water change and that was just yesterday? I am planning on testing again tonight to double check.. also my fish and cleaner shrimp all seem perfect just the one dead snail, and the others hiding, but they seem to do that normally anyways..
And holy quick reply batman :)
thx
 
chrisb430

chrisb430

Member
lol it was the first one i saw when i went to the new posts. If it was zero then i would not worry about it. could have been a sick snail.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member

.25 ammonia is not deadly, not desired but not deadly.
Nitrates below 40 is okay for inverts and coral. Fish can stand it much higher.
Snails play dead all the time. If you touch them they just drop and they are non moving in the daylight as a rule. So your snail may not be dead. When they die they turn to snot and disappear from the shell, leaving it empty.
 
beaslbob

beaslbob

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/3238892
one undeniable truth things just die
+1
and especially with snails. When I get say 10 or so it seems that 1 or two always die off in a short while.
that said I have heard that copper can be a problem with snails. So if you have a mass die off and cannot keep any snails in the system that would be one reason.
I think

my .02
 
mony97

mony97

Member
So Flower gets the prize on this one, the snail must have been playing dead because it was up and around today after a day of laying on its back?
All of my other snails are fine so I guess there is really no issue, and as stated didnt care much if the snail had died, was just curious of why.. So I gained some knowlege and now know that a snail may randomly lye on its back sometimes haha..
Thx guys and gals for the help!
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
What you are describing is a symptom of starvation.
I'm not saying your snail is starving, I'm saying that what you described is consistent with a snail that is starving.
Just FYI - Nitrite isn't much more toxic than Nitrate for most saltwater animals. Ammonia is the deadly toxin we need to be diligent about.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by Bang Guy
http:///forum/post/3239061
What you are describing is a symptom of starvation.
I'm not saying your snail is starving, I'm saying that what you described is consistent with a snail that is starving.
Just FYI - Nitrite isn't much more toxic than Nitrate for most saltwater animals. Ammonia is the deadly toxin we need to be diligent about.

If I touch a snail with my mag float, and it just drops off the glass like it is dead. Is that really a sign of starvation, or did I miss something?
My sea stars do the same thing, touch it and it drops like a dead thing. After a few minutes they get up and crawl away. In the bright lights snails just sit there until dark.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by Flower
http:///forum/post/3239078

If I touch a snail with my mag float, and it just drops off the glass like it is dead. Is that really a sign of starvation, or did I miss something?
My sea stars do the same thing, touch it and it drops like a dead thing. After a few minutes they get up and crawl away. In the bright lights snails just sit there until dark.
No. But if it just falls off the glass for no reason it probably has some issue.
 
mony97

mony97

Member
Huh, I never knew that.. All of my other nassarius snails seem ok and this is the first time I have observed this? Also I only have 9 of them in my 65 right now and the tank is 3 months old do you think they might be starving? and what can I do to fix this?
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by mony97
http:///forum/post/3239368
Huh, I never knew that.. All of my other nassarius snails seem ok and this is the first time I have observed this? Also I only have 9 of them in my 65 right now and the tank is 3 months old do you think they might be starving? and what can I do to fix this?

A small chunk of meaty seafood once in a while is all they should require.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by mony97
http:///forum/post/3239450
Cool so just add a small chuck of shrimp etc. for them at the bottom of the tank?

Yes, once Nassarius detect carrion (dead meat) in the tank they should pop out of the sand and go looking for it.
 
killer whale

killer whale

Member
Originally Posted by mony97
http:///forum/post/3238552
So I know the basics any ammonia is toxic to fish same with trites, and for corals trates can be fatal as well. But my question is what can be toxic to a nassarius snail? I found one dead this morning in my tank, it look like he had just simply fallen over? I just did a water change yesterday and before changing the water my ammonia, trites, trates, and pH were all perfect so I dont think this to be the cause.. All of my other snails seem to be doing fine but were hidding? Is there something that I am not testing for that may have caused this? Dont much care that the snail died just curious and want to make sure what ever this is wont effect my fish..
Thanks
Why did you do a water change if your water parameters were perfect unless you were restoring trace elements. Be careful you dont overdo it. You dont want to wipe out the biological system that establishes your aquarium. I wouldn't worry to much about a single snail. I maintain several aquariums and I find a dead snail from time to time This doesn't necessarily mean theres a problem with your water parameters. Just keep an eye on it
 
gill again68

gill again68

Active Member
Ill tell you this, if you have hermits your snails wont have a chance to play dead. Seems every time one of my snails hits the sand a hermit gets a new shell.

I feed a frozen blend and typically feed enough that some gets to the sand as well as my corals. Those nassarius seem to be able to smell it in the water column. They jump up when it hits the water. Really cool.
 
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