[willertac]

I got 2 Nerites on Monday and they are pretty active. They had an ADF as a tank mate, but the frog died mysteriously with a layer of a semi-clear substance encasing one of its legs. They currently live in a 10g tank that recently overcame greenwater. Today, I couldn't find one of them anywhere, and all that is in their tank is a pile of gravel off to the side. I found it on the glass outside of the water, just sitting there. I pushed it away as gently as i could until it dropped and continued to crawl on the bottom of the tank in the water. Just now, I couldn't find either of them, and this time the one who left before was in the corner and the other was under the rim of the HOB.
I'm used to my Mystery snails leaving the water to lay eggs , but I know these cannot reproduce without brackish water. Is this normal behavior for this type of snails, or does something like the frog dying have anything to do with it?

Thanks!

 

[Laki]

Sounds like they want to get the heck out of that water! Do a water change bc of the dead frog and see if they stay in.

That said, nerites are surprisingly hardy! My nerite is almost 3 years old now. She crawled out of my old 5 gallon and was out for about 2 days before I found her and floated her. I thought for sure she was dead and was getting ready to toss her but then she recovered. She didn't eat for a long time but now she's grazing again in the 20g.

 

[Nuthatch]

The nerites in my lfs are always leaving their tank. The guys just gently detach them & drop them back in. Apparently they will leave through any & all openings.

 

[willertac]

The nerites in my lfs are always leaving their tank. The guys just gently detach them & drop them back in. Apparently they will leave through any & all openings.

I did the water change but it didn't really change their behavior; I found the original escapee out of the water again.
Ugh... I unknowingly bought escape artists.
And since my mom takes care of the fish over the majority of the summer, I'll have to warn her. But for now, the only way they can completely escape is if they managed to climb over the rim of the filter as I've taped ziplocks to the holes in the cover. And if they did (and gravity didn't take over), the cat might suddenly be curious about how escargot tastes...

 

[Laki]

If you can, you can put plastic wrap across the top so they cannot escape

 

[Holstein]

its normal for them there tidal i think i was told so they dont mind being out of the water for some time

 

[LongTimeAquarist]

Never had that problem with mine, but I did find something on YouTube where if you use something like VaporRub and place some along the top of the tank, under the plastic top, and other places like the heater and filter, and it becomes too slippery for the snail. Plus, it acts like a training agent to after awhile, they wouldn't want to try to reach all the way to the top.

 

[Nuthatch]

Wouldn't vapour rub make the snails sick? Or if it got in to the tank water might it hurt the fish?

 

[LongTimeAquarist]

nope, I tried it and all it does is make it too slippery for the snails and it has no effect on the water, completely harmless to both snails and fish. after a while, it dries up enough to where all you have to do is pull it off like those elastic, or whatever things, some stores use to place price tags on things. completely harmless and whatever touches the water becomes neutralized.

 

[Nuthatch]

Huh. Do you think that vaseline would fit the bill? It's slippery but should be less potentially toxic? The smell & heat aspect of the vaporub makes me worry.

 

[LongTimeAquarist]

depends on the light you use. like I said, I found it on youtube, tried it and it works. chances are it just makes the rub smell bad. plus the only way for it to kill the snails is if they eat it, but other than that, it makes them look bad.