The battle of the scrubbing

[gitsumpottery]

Hey all,

Now I have been taking my clam out to scrub the pyrammelid snails off every morning. I usually have a bristle worm attached as well, so it seems like this little 2.5" squamosa is fighting a losing battle.

My question is.... How could this possibly get better? (I need some encouragement to keep scrubbing the little dude) Can these snails all of a sudden die off? I don't think there is a treatment for them, and I am not one for throwing some chemical in the tank anyway.

So is the best scenario just to scrub away a couple times a week for the rest of the clams life?

Zac

[mjsandbe]

Do you have a 6-line wrasse? I have found much better clam health when I have one in the tank, seems to eat the tiny snails and such.

[gitsumpottery]

As a matter of fact I do (six line wrasse).


I found about 30 snails yesterday, and about 3-4 today.... How often do you think I should check it? I have been watching the clam to see when it retracts, and that is usually when there is a good amount of snails underneath.

Zac

[Casey]

Zac keep picking them off make sure the clam is up on the rocks keep him high it makes it harder for the snails to get to him,there really is no quik cure just stick to
picking them off and killing the buggers.To bad you dont have another tank you could move him to.

[gitsumpottery]

thanks for the replys casey and mjsandbe...


zac

[Sue Truett]

Zac, sadly there is no cure for the pyramid snails..yet... They are a clams worse enemy. The best thing to do is check the clam daily or even twice daily and get them off as soon as you see any. You may be able to cut down on the number of snails that way.

Once they're gone though it'll be a more enjoyable thing to watch your clam. The 6 line should help you. I have used quite successfully in the past a yellow coris wrasse. Some swear by China wrasses too....

[gitsumpottery]

Well I left the clam alone for a couple of days since the last scrubbing, and then looked this morning. I found no snails whatsoever on the clam, so that was good news... It sure beats the 30 or so, I found the other day. I still scrubbed the shell, and will wait a couple of days until I check again.


Zac

[Casey]

Good job Zac keep checking

[ReefLuvR]

I'm having the same trouble with my squamosa. My maximas and crocea are fine. Guess it 'cuz they're up in the rocks. I thought squamosa preferred the sand? Am I wrong? Can I move him up?

[Sue Truett]

T. squamosa clams are sand bed dwelling clams but if your having that snail trouble I would move it up some. Maybe not as high in the rock as the other clams but if getting the clam off the sand bed works thats what counts.

[ReefLuvR]

Guess I was too late. My squamosa died yesterday. Poor thing. Darned pyram snails. I got a six-line now. Hopefully they won't get my Maximas or Crocea.

How is your clam Zac?

[gitsumpottery]

Sorry, haven't checked this thread in quite a while!

My clam is doing great! I have been checking every 4-5 days and I only find about 1-2 snails on my clam. Seems like they are slowly going away...

Zac

[gitsumpottery]

Oh, I forgot to mention something... I have noticed that the pyrammelid snails are hanging inside my cerith snail's shells. These snails seem to be extremely parasitic. Does anyone have any problems with their snails being killed because of these? (I know snails aren't that much of a problem since everyone has so many, just wondering if anyone made this discovery...)

Zac

[Casey]

Zac thats how they breed remove all empty shells immediately.

[gitsumpottery]

Never knew that... thanks Casey!


Zac