[Liplant]

Good or bad

 

[Blacktetra]

Those are common pond snails. They are avoided like the plague by many aquarists. I personally keep them as part of my competing snail populations (I have 5 different species in a tank). And I also have no real problems with them eating my plants, the exception being when they munch on weak leaves. This is a yin-yang thing though, as while I hate having holes munched in the leaves, it is also a very clear, visible reminder that something isn't right in my aquarium. Usually it's an indication that I didn't dose ferts the previous week.

If you don't want lots of them, kill them all now. Without any other competition in the tank they will multiply quite readily.

 

[dukydaf]

Good and evil depends on the values you hold. What do you hope/are afraid of ?

You have a pond snail in there. They can breed like crazy and should not cause problems on most healthy plants.

 

[Zoidborg]

I find pond snails are evil they have a population explosion if left unattended. Id kill them now or if you dont like killing them get some Assassin Snails and they keep the population at 0.

 

[kevmo911]

I don't believe there are bad snails, which is convenient, because they're incredibly tough to get completely rid of. But yes, I agree that it's a pond snail and shouldn't do any damage.

If you decide that they're a nuisance, you can reduce feeding, increase plant mass, vacuum the substrate, and/or do manual removal. Do a search for snail traps. Though I recommend the "toss a veggie in the tank and pull it out when it's covered in snails" method of population control. There are also more extreme measures if you're rabidly fearful of, or angry at, snails (this seems to be the case for some forum members), but I don't recommend them.

 

[dzega]

the only good snail is assassin snail

i love apple snails tho

 

[burr740]

I like snails. They are a natural part of the ecosystem, relentless cleaners of algae and decaying matter, and pretty cool creatures in their own right.

 

[Nordic]

Yeah those snails in your photo really do well at cleaning diatom build up and dead algae off leaves... but they multiply like a pest... float some lettuce overnight occasionally and pull it out and discard in the morning, you should manage to catch quite a few. I just squish any small ones that come close to the surface during general inspections. Also keep an eye open for their snotty egg pouches and remove as soon as spotted.

 

[OrangeAugust]

No snail is a bad snail! :wink2:
If you don't over-feed your tank, they will stop multiplying as much. I had an overpopulation of pond snails and ramshorn snails. I stopped feeding my fish so much and both snail populations seemed to disappear. Recently I got a big algae problem and I thought, "hmm... snails would help a lot in eating that." so I started overfeeding my tank again, and a whole bunch of ramshorn snails showed up!
So anyway, my suggestion, pay attention to how much you are feeding your fish. try to cut back if you can and your snails will probably stop multiplying, or their multiplication rate will greatly decrease.

 

[wmnash]

Snails have their place, but not eating my carefully cultivated plants. Several months ago I discovered snails had miraculously invaded the 75 gal tank in my bedroom -- my "counting shoals" go to sleep aquarium. I began smashing them on site, to the delight of the ghost shrimp population that has taken hold. Ghost shrimp love smashed snails. But the snails kept appearing. I hesitated going for my second means of ridding the tank of the little critters, because my bedroom aquarium is basically a giant nano tank: mini 9 lambchop rasboras, 6 small black neon tetras, 11 pygmy coryduras, 3 lavish male guppies, a kuhli I never see and my retired stud Betta (he's four years-old and turning gray). So plopping in a trio of baby clown loaches wasn't exactly what I wanted to do. But I did, and they immediately began rooting up a year-old planted tank. But I held in there, repairing their nightly damage every morning and I have to admit the tank is relatively snail free. I'll keep them in the tank for three more months then return them to my LFS. I look at it as though I'm leasing them for the time I need them. They certainly grow fast in a large tank. And they have their attractive attributes. I just wish there was a miniature version of them. But they do love a feast of fresh snails and will dig deep in substrate to satisfy their snail addiction. Good luck with your snails.

 

[thegirlundertherainbow]

I say plague...bad. Hesitate and it'll be too late too keep from having hundreds.

 

[jaliberti]

Depends who you're asking. Many Gourami, Puffer, Gambusia, Loaches, etc would say, "mmm good! more please!" They go for >$0.20 each as feeders on AquaBid.

Bump: Depends which species you're asking. Many Gourami, Puffer, Gambusia, Loaches, etc would say, "mmm good! more please!" They go for >$0.20 each as feeders on AquaBid.

 

[californiashrimp]

I think they're fine. Yes the population can explode if you overfeed but the solution to that is don't overfeed. They can actually be a good barometer of whether you're feeding the right amount.

 

[bsherwood]

Pond snails- I don't like them and want them gone. However I am a huge fan of mystery snails.

 

[Bushkill]

Those are common pond snails. They are avoided like the plague by many aquarists. I personally keep them as part of my competing snail populations (I have 5 different species in a tank). And I also have no real problems with them eating my plants, the exception being when they munch on weak leaves. This is a yin-yang thing though, as while I hate having holes munched in the leaves, it is also a very clear, visible reminder that something isn't right in my aquarium. Usually it's an indication that I didn't dose ferts the previous week.

If you don't want lots of them, kill them all now. Without any other competition in the tank they will multiply quite readily.

Agree on all points.

If you don't care for snails, don't complain about diatoms on the glass and leaves and floating bits of uneaten food. They serve a purpose first and the bigger mystery snails are pretty cool to watch cruising the glass.