oh my god! snail death!

[mattseattle]

ok, this is the most bizarre thing that i've witnessed in my aquarium so far.

i just bought 8 new margarita snails. i brought them home and acclimated them to the tank and all that.

after about 30 minutes 3 of them went to the top of the rocks. i then noticed that one snail was piggy backing the other snail. about 5 minutes later there was a third snail on top. so i mean literally there was one snail on top of another on top of another. the top 2 snails soon released fluid into the tank. one snail released a white liquid (i am assuming sperm) and the other was releasing a thicker substance that looked like eggs to me. but the 2 top snails were putting so much weight on the bottom one and with the current of the powerheads hitting them they were literally ripping the bottom snail apart. his poooooor little body was being torn from his shell. about 5 minutes later his body was clinging to the rock and his shell was half way down with the other 2 still attached. they kept releasing these fluids into the tank for about 5 minutes total on and off. finally the bottom snail's shell broke apart from his body and they all fell to the back of the tank.

i did a search for snail reproduction but didn't see anything about snails releasing sperm and stuff into the water. i don't know if this is what it was or what....but this was so bizarre.

so do i let the snail decompose in the tank or do i try to get it out? and what were these fluids?

eekkkks....i am speechless.

 

[Mushroom Boy]

That definitely sounds like a spawning event. I've had a few in my tank. The part about the bottom snail being torn apart seems like a fluke, though. I've never heard of, or seen that before. Sounds like the bottom snail was in the wrong place at the wrong time

 

[mattseattle]

it was totally bizarre. that poor little snail....sex killed him! and he wasn't even part of it.

so when things like that die in your tank do you try to get them out or let them decompose? i would imagine if it were a fish or something larger you would it was a tiny little snail.

 

[MtnDewMan]

Nothing like a 3rd wheel taking the ultimate sacrifice for it's sex hungry friends.

 

[mattseattle]

i know and after all this...my tank is a tad bit cloudy from all the 'stuff' released. too bad i didn't have a video camera to capture this event. it was truly something for national geographic.

 

[G~]

i have had this happen a couple of times with my margarita snails. they usually do it with 3 like you said. they actually will wait for current. they climb up to the highest rock and wait. when my pump starts the squirting began. i have not seen any margarita snailetts around so my quess is the skimmer got em.

G~

 

[mattseattle]

it was bizarre. my tank is clear this morning but last night it was a cloudy mess.

i read somewhere that margarita snails are prone to spawn whenever they are subjected to a water change. i guess since they were new to the tank they decided it was time to spawn. so 3 of them went to the highest point in the tank and one gave his life for the many!

it was still freaky to witness but kinda kewl at the same time.

 

[mojoreef]

Snail sex aint for the weak at heart

 

[mattseattle]

*laff* well that is the truth.

 

[Montanarocknreefer]

Hey Mike! Remember that guy over at TRT that had that snail massage parlor!

 

[mattseattle]

ok, fill me in on this story.

no snail spawning today in my tank and it's finally clear. man, what a festival last night!! i should've filmed it and sold it!

 

[kylem]

I have 4 of my snails that have a little shell piggy backing. The shell never moves but it looks like a abalony shell with the same look as the big snail. I pulled one off and it looks like a snail but there was also a white or transparent crab in with it. Weird. Is this some part of the parrent snail reproduction or is it a parrasite of some sort. Anybody have any clues?

 

[Elmo18]

Notice that Margarita snails come from cooler waters, temperate waters and not tropical. At around 80-82, they will die over time, especially if not acclimated well.

- Elmo