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Brandino007
02/26/2006, 12:24 AM
Has anyone noticed any Nassarius snails at a LFS lately?
Cause I would like to get some.

jcatblum
02/26/2006, 12:46 AM
Are you lookin for the black ones? Try Ebay....

MyMonkey
02/26/2006, 07:28 AM
Oddly enough, I have not seen any true Nassarius lately. However, you might call Aquariums in Edmond. I think she generally has many types of snails on hand.

saltysooner
02/26/2006, 08:31 AM
crystal clear in Norman has some.

JimmyS
02/26/2006, 08:45 AM
Aquariums usually has some.

sadsak
02/26/2006, 09:05 AM
reef shop had some friday

captbunzo
02/26/2006, 11:49 AM
Same old tangent, make sure you find actual Nassarius (Nassarius vibex, albus, and distortus) and not the "black ones", which are actually:

1. Not Nassarius at all, but rather another snail called Illynassa obsoleta
2. Cold water snails (not really appropriate for our tanks)
3. More plant eaters, not carrion feeders like true Nassarius.

In short, it is better to find true nassarius because they are simply much better cleanup crew snails. They will consume more extra food and stir the sand then Illynassa obsoleta. And by NOT buying fake Nassarius, you'll vote with your dollars to get people to stop calling Illynassa by the wrong name.

http://static.flickr.com/36/104733813_5fb412912f_m.jpg
   Nassarius vibex
   True Nassarius

http://static.flickr.com/38/104733818_881a27657f_o.jpg
   Illynassa obsoleta
   False Nassarius

Please refer to this article (http://web.archive.org/web/20010410073108/http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish/library/articleview2.asp?Section=&RecordNo=166) for more on Nassarius, Illynassa, etc.

A little more background on the naming issue. Earlier in the 20th century, Illynassa were called Nassarius obsoleta, or something like that. However, for over 2 decades they have been known as Illynassa obsoleta.

captbunzo
02/26/2006, 11:49 AM
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6831069#post6831069 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by captbunzo
Same old tangent, make sure you find actual Nassarius (Nassarius vibex, albus, and distortus) and not the "black ones", which are actually:

1. Not Nassarius at all, but rather another snail called Illynassa obsoleta
2. Cold water snails (not really appropriate for our tanks)
3. More plant eaters, not carrion feeders like true Nassarius.

In short, it is better to find true nassarius because they are simply much better cleanup crew snails. They will consume more extra food and stir the sand then Illynassa obsoleta. And by NOT buying fake Nassarius, you'll vote with your dollars to get people to stop calling Illynassa by the wrong name.

http://static.flickr.com/36/104733813_5fb412912f_m.jpg
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Nassarius vibex
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;True Nassarius

http://static.flickr.com/38/104733818_881a27657f_o.jpg
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Illynassa obsoleta
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;False Nassarius

Please refer to this article (http://web.archive.org/web/20010410073108/http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish/library/articleview2.asp?Section=&RecordNo=166) for more on Nassarius, Illynassa, etc.

A little more background on the naming issue. Earlier in the 20th century, Illynassa were called Nassarius obsoleta, or something like that. However, for over 2 decades they have been known as Illynassa obsoleta.

Brandino007
02/26/2006, 12:23 PM
Thanks for all the info.

MyMonkey
02/26/2006, 02:18 PM
Speeking of Nassarius vibex vs. Illynassa obsoleta. I have both. The Illyanassa, as mentioned are not Nassarius at all. Although, they are good scavengers. I had a 10 gallon setup with just them and some hermits in it. They were eager to eat anyting I dropped in. They actually chased down and grabed a sick Kole Tang right before my eyes. They will also clean the glass. Though, not very effectively. Their diet is close to 60% meaty items I believe. I read tons of info on them. Commonly known as Mud Snails. They do prefer cold water. Although, mine have thus far lasted 8 months. I actualy gave many away.

REgarding Nassarius, I just happen to have a pic of some Nassarius in my tank. I only have 4 of them. They only come out of the sand when I feed certain foods. Silversides mainly. Once they come out I give them a portion to share. :D However, I have a Translucent Cave Goby that hates these snails. He attacks them when they come near is cave. I have tried to catch it on video because it is really cool. He is very aggressive it seems. Here are some before and after shots.

Trolling along:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v247/MyMonkey/IMG_3861.jpg

Something Bit me!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v247/MyMonkey/IMG_3863.jpg

Thought that was interesting.

captbunzo
02/26/2006, 02:25 PM
Hehe. I am temporarily housing a magenta pseudochromis in my tank that seems to not like my nassarius snails as well. My nassarius (Nassarius vibex - the small ones) will bulldoze out of the sand whenever I put ANY variety of meaty food, flake, etc, into the tank.

Nice pics, MyMonkey. That looks like what LiveAquaria calls a super tongan nassarius snail (Nassarius distortus) (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=1763http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=1763). They get about twice as big as the smaller Nassarius that I have kept. I've been wanting for a long time to try some of the bigger ones and see how they behave.

Very cool!

captbunzo
02/26/2006, 02:26 PM
Oh yeah - meant to post a pic.... Notice the slightly different shape of the shell of the Nassarius distortus vs. Nassarius vibex.

http://a1272.g.akamai.net/7/1272/1121/20051201224426/www.liveaquaria.com/images/products/large/p_89294.jpg

MyMonkey
02/26/2006, 02:39 PM
Not sure which these are. They are fairly large though. They move quickly for snails. They do have the large white foot though. Might be distortus.