View Full Version : nassarius snails eat queen conches?
chrisstankevitz
09/15/2006, 09:49 PM
Just added a queen conch to my 24 gallon nanocube which has 4 nassarius snails already.
The snails are going after the conch. The conch is pretty [profanity] in terms of getting out of town, but understandably it worries me. Are the nassarius snails trying to eat the conch because it is sick?
The nassarius snails climb onto the conch, and deploy "the tube" (if you have nassarius snails you know what I'm talking about). Then the conch cartwheels the heck out of there.
Thanks for your advice,
Chris
meco65
09/15/2006, 09:58 PM
Had a Queen conch that eight my Mexican turbo.
Conches eat algae. Nassarius eat dead things. If the conch is giving them 'dismount' cues, the conch is healthy enough. It may dive beneath the sand [as they do] and disappear for a month at a time---one of mine was AWOL for 3 months---and reappear with no explanation.
drummereef
09/16/2006, 12:29 AM
I've heard of Nassarius snails competing with each other but not other snails. They are probably just making friends with her :)
TekCat
09/16/2006, 12:41 AM
Nassarius Obsoleta (sp?) reported to have predatory tendencies. They could kill.
However if you have Nassarius Vibex, then it is really weird... they eat poop, not poopers :)
a4twenty
09/16/2006, 11:16 AM
are you sure they are nassarius? whelks look a lot like nassarius snails and are predatory. check this (http://www.melevsreef.com/id/whats_a_whelk.html) out to be sure.
Definitely with a4twenty---if any snail eats another, get it out of your tank: predatory whelks are a variety of 'snail' that is just here for lunch.
chrisstankevitz
09/16/2006, 03:10 PM
My four nassarius snails eat dead crabs. One ate a live black margarita snail that was clearly sick. The black margarita snail was on her back and kept falling down onto her back whenever I would right her. A nassarius "smelled the sickness" (?), surfaced, and at the snail.
This same nassarius snail tried eating the queen conch, but the conch fought off the attack.
Here is a picture of the nassarius snail to tried to eat the live conch. He is a pig, but only eats dead/dying animals (so far):
http://www.stankevitz.com/aquarium/nelson2.jpg
http://www.stankevitz.com/aquarium/nelson-eating-marge.jpg http://www.stankevitz.com/aquarium/nelson-eating-herb.jpg
meco65
09/16/2006, 05:38 PM
Not to take over the thread so I have a whelk I think because it never goes under sand, and a Queen conch that dose go under sand, and a nassarius that stays under the sand. The only time I have ever saw them together is when they ate my Mexican Turbo snail. That said, so my Mexican turbo was more than likely dieing for them all to gang up on it and eat it like that??
chrisstankevitz
09/16/2006, 05:45 PM
Meco, I cannot answer your question, but I have seen the same. Your queen conch spends her time under the sand? I've never seen mine go under the sand or even try to go under the sand.
meco65
09/16/2006, 05:55 PM
I guess I need to find out if its a Queen, Crown or Horse conch. Those are the kinds of conchs that I have herd of mine was sold as a Queen. Going by what I found on the net mine looks like a Crown Conch. I also did a test it will eat algae and I put a piece of frozen shrimp in front of it and it ate it also.
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