# Safe snails for planted tank help to choose please



## will5 (Oct 26, 2005)

Hi I need help picking out snails for my 10 gallon planted. Now i know that these are safe

Nerites (i really like the virgins)
Horned 
Miner
Staghorn or spike
MT's

But are there any others. I'm like gold mystery. I really like the color. But I'm not sure if they are plant safe. So could someone give me some help please. Thank you


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

For mystery snails you have to make sure they are brigesii. Plenty of info on http://applesnail.net/


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## dukydaf (Aug 31, 2004)

like torbomkt said that site is a good info.I would like to add that even the safe sanils would eat fineleafed plants( if they are not very healthy) and hygrophila species.
They are also very vulnerable to high Co2 levels and sme of my angels eat them.I have pics so if you want to know what specie to look for youcan ask me><>


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## milalic (Aug 26, 2005)

will5 said:


> Hi I need help picking out snails for my 10 gallon planted. Now i know that these are safe
> 
> Nerites (i really like the virgins)
> Horned
> ...


From the nerites there are:
Ruby nerite
Zebra nerite
Horse shoe nerite
Olive Nerite
Virgin nerite

I believe what you called staghorn is the same as horned...in here you have:
- Normal brown horned
- Zebra horned ( it has some olive green stripes)
- Bee horned ( lighter green stripes)

I have the snails mentioned above and I have not seen them eat any type of plants. They are good algae eaters, even Green spot algae. That has been my experience.

I have a few threads here of my snails.

Cheers,
Pedro


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## Aquaspot (Jan 19, 2006)

Malayan Trumpet Snails are your safest bet.
They loosen the base, eat dead materials and hide during lights-on period. 
What more can you ask for?


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## JerseyScape (Nov 18, 2005)

Aquaspot said:


> Malayan Trumpet Snails are your safest bet.
> They loosen the base, eat dead materials and hide during lights-on period.
> What more can you ask for?


I agree. I love my Malasian Trumpet Snails since they don't bother anything and are very beneficial to your substrate. The best thing is that you can buy 20 for 2 bucks on aquabid.


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## Jane in Upton (Aug 10, 2005)

One thing to be aware of with the nerites is their eggs. They are great in a planted tank, and I too am pretty sure they eat green spot algae, but they will lay white eggs everywhere. The happier they are, the more eggs they lay. 

These are calciferous, and are often described as looking like white sesame seeds sprinkled about. They're easy to remove from glass, but less so from plants, especially slow growing plants like anubias. For that reason, I wouldn't recommende them for a "show" tank. But as a great, attractive, algae eating snail, they're wonderful. 

MTS are also a good choice. They're detritovores. I keep the Brigs (aka Mystery Snails) and have never had any problems with them harming my plants. The Brigs do need to be fed. They're not strictly algae eaters, and their shell will deteriorate if they do not get adequate nutrition. I give mine OSI shrimp pellets, which have good amounts of calcium. 

If you can find them, there is a type of viviparous (livebearing) snail that is sometimes called a "mini mystery" because their shell shape is similar to the Brigs. These are tiny, and only measure 3/16 of an inch across when full grown. I love these for a planted tank. They can get onto the tiniest division of a fine leafed plant, and because they're livebearers, they don't over-populate like some of the egg layers. They never harm the plants, and aren't as "assertive" as the brown ramshorn or even the MTS can be. I've seen them ignore food pellets the other snails swarm, as they troll around and look for algae. From what I've seen, (purely my own observations) I think they prefer algae.

-Jane


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## will5 (Oct 26, 2005)

*Hi*

Hi thanks guys/girls for all the help. There are a lot of choices but i thik i am going to go with the OLIVES and GOLD MYSTERYS.


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## h4n (Dec 23, 2005)

i got olives in my tank, they do a great job, i had green alge on a big leaf on my sword and i actully placed a snail there next day it was clean! but they do leave some unsightly white egg that are a pita to remove/get rid of.


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## will5 (Oct 26, 2005)

*Hi*

Hi so i put my order in to wilma(http://www.jayscustomcomputers.com/wilma/)

I ordered three olives and two gold mystery snails. She is working with me because I wanted a male and a female. So she said that she would do a couple cooler water changes and pick out a pair while they are mating. I am on pins and needles waiting for her email saying that that they are ready to go.Almost like a dad waiting to see his new born kid.


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## oceanaqua (Oct 24, 2005)

Red ramshorn will not eat your plants also.


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## skincareaddicted (Mar 19, 2007)

I just bought a gold mystery snail from petsmart today. I am not sure if it will eat plants or not since I can't tell if it's the right kind of apple snail. He is really cute though, i never knew they had little faces and everything. He (i ascertained the sex) looks like a pokemon up close. My newest yellow betta is getting along fine with the gold snail by the way. I am not sure how my aggressive blue betta will like snails though!


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## Purrbox (Jun 1, 2006)

This link should help. Since you got the snail from PetSmart there's a pretty good chance that it's a Brig and completely plant safe. That's what our PetSmart carries in Gold, Chestnut, Ivory, and Blue.


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## will5 (Oct 26, 2005)

It sould be safe for your plants since they have been really good about keep the non plant eating one. But don't quote me on it though.


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## skincareaddicted (Mar 19, 2007)

thanks! I just put in some anacharis, so i will see if he does any harm.


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