Gulf of Mexico snails

Hammonsadam · 04/29/2012, 02:38 PM

I recently collected some awesome snails out of the Gulf around Galveston tx. Are these snails ok for a reef tank? I have star polyps, mushrooms, brain coral etc. i was scared to add them for i dont want my corals to get hurt

SushiGirl · 04/29/2012, 03:16 PM

Depends on what kind they are.

pagojoe · 04/30/2012, 04:51 PM

The little tiny ones that are dark with white speckles (from the jetty blocks) are Echinolittorina species, and are algae eaters. They won't be harmful, but they are used to a high-oxygen environment, so I'm not sure how they'll fare in your tank. The ones you can find in the grass along the edge of the bay (less than an inch long) are also littorinids, and will be ok. The others, gray, brown, or orange and bigger, that you find on the rocks are Stramonita species, and they are predators that you probably don't want in your tank.

Cheers,

Don

TX..r33f · 04/30/2012, 04:56 PM

i love going down to Galveston and trying to find things to put in tank. Any one ever had luck with catting peppermint shrimp there??

Disher · 05/02/2012, 10:24 AM

I think those are Zebra Periwinkle snails. I collected some in Port Aransas and they do well in my tank, very hardy. Some of them will crawl out of your tank and they are nocturnal.

Disher · 05/02/2012, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TX..r33f

i love going down to Galveston and trying to find things to put in tank. Any one ever had luck with catting peppermint shrimp there??

They are nocturnal so you can only catch them at night. Get a head lamp and a minnow net and start scraping along the jettie rocks. I caught literally hundreds of these guys doing this, even during red tide!! I left some of them in a bucket for a month with an air stone and they were all alive. Hardy little boogers. Good luck!

04/29/2012, 02:38 PM	#1
Hammonsadam Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Texas Posts: 10	Gulf of Mexico snails I recently collected some awesome snails out of the Gulf around Galveston tx. Are these snails ok for a reef tank? I have star polyps, mushrooms, brain coral etc. i was scared to add them for i dont want my corals to get hurt

04/29/2012, 03:16 PM	#2
SushiGirl Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX USA Posts: 8,067	Depends on what kind they are. __________________ Visit my Homepage or "My Albums" (via Profile) for hitchhiker pics. Current Tank Info: 55g softy/LPS tank & 20L reef tank

04/30/2012, 04:51 PM	#3
pagojoe Team RC Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Conroe, TX Posts: 2,009	The little tiny ones that are dark with white speckles (from the jetty blocks) are Echinolittorina species, and are algae eaters. They won't be harmful, but they are used to a high-oxygen environment, so I'm not sure how they'll fare in your tank. The ones you can find in the grass along the edge of the bay (less than an inch long) are also littorinids, and will be ok. The others, gray, brown, or orange and bigger, that you find on the rocks are Stramonita species, and they are predators that you probably don't want in your tank. Cheers, Don

04/30/2012, 04:56 PM	#4
TX..r33f Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Houston Tx :) Posts: 553	i love going down to Galveston and trying to find things to put in tank. Any one ever had luck with catting peppermint shrimp there??

05/02/2012, 10:24 AM	#5
Disher Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 66	I think those are Zebra Periwinkle snails. I collected some in Port Aransas and they do well in my tank, very hardy. Some of them will crawl out of your tank and they are nocturnal.