# Snails that burrow in substrate



## bigfish93 (Jul 7, 2009)

I know MTS are some of the best snails for this job, but I am struggling to find anybody that sells them around here. Are there any other snails that would be good for fluffing up my sand?


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## TL1000RSquid (Sep 25, 2011)

I've never seen them for sale in a fish store around here, I've acquired mine from classified sections on fish forums. I've seen a few ad's lately for them for just the shipping costs. Look for someone getting rid of some along with some plants to make the shipping worthwhile. You don't really need to get to many of them, they'll breed easily on there own and build up a population your tank can sustain. 

Assassin snails will also burrow but they're another snail I've never seen for sale in a store.


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## bigfish93 (Jul 7, 2009)

TL1000RSquid said:


> I've never seen them for sale in a fish store around here, I've acquired mine from classified sections on fish forums. I've seen a few ad's lately for them for just the shipping costs. Look for someone getting rid of some along with some plants to make the shipping worthwhile. You don't really need to get to many of them, they'll breed easily on there own and build up a population your tank can sustain.
> 
> Assassin snails will also burrow but they're another snail I've never seen for sale in a store.


Thanks for the quick reply. I would love to order some from the classified section but I don't want to set up a paypal account. Assassin snails would be good though. They look cool and my LFS sells them. I will probably end up getting those.


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## amazon21 (Jun 28, 2010)

bigfish93 said:


> Thanks for the quick reply. I would love to order some from the classified section but I don't want to set up a paypal account. Assassin snails would be good though. They look cool and my LFS sells them. I will probably end up getting those.


It would take a lot of assassin snails to get the same substrate aeration effect that MTS give you, since assassin snails don't breed as quickly and don't spend as much time in the substrate when compared to MTS.


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## Nubster (Aug 1, 2011)

All you need is like 10 MTS. Within a couple weeks you'll have all you will ever need. I bought 10...it's been about 3 weeks. I have 50+ now. I'll probably be selling some soon when they get a little bigger...lol


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## bigfish93 (Jul 7, 2009)

Ok thanks. It sounds like MTS are the only way to go. I will try to get a hold of some in the near future. I am going to talk with my LFS and see if they would consider ordering them.


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## Nubster (Aug 1, 2011)

I bet they have them in their tanks even if they aren't selling them. My LFS doesn't sell them either but I got some as hitch hikers when I bought plants there. They were all killed though when I had a bad outbreak of columnaris and had to medicate my tank. Just look in their tanks and see if you can see any small cone shaped snails. If you do...see if they will let you have them. This is what they look like when very small...


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## bigfish93 (Jul 7, 2009)

Thanks Nubster. I never thought of doing that, but I will definitely take a look the next time I'm there. I would only need a couple to get a population going right?


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## Nubster (Aug 1, 2011)

Yeah... just a few is all you need. You'll have plenty not long after.


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## TheAsylum (Oct 10, 2011)

I got a few snails from my LFS. Mine mostly stay on the service. They're excellent at cleaning.

I caught 2 larger snails at a lake near my house. They do nothing except crawl through the sand. They are amazing at moving the sand around. The only problem is that they are strong! They move EVERYTHING! Sand, plants, and even rocks.

I'm not sure what kind of snails they are but the 2 different kinds work well.


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

Stores that have them usually sell them for a couple dollars, but only one or two snails is all you need. _Melanoides tuberculata_ is the scientific name, though other actual species may be within the common Malaysian Trumpet or Livebearing Snail group. These are Prosobranch snails, meaning they have gills, and they also have an operculum which is best described as a trapdoor that shuts and protects them from fish predation; loaches find these snails very difficult to "get at."

Some sources say this snail is an hermaphrodite, meaning each snail possesses both male and female organs and can thus create and fertilize its own eggs, while others say there are distinct male and female snails. The "parent" retains the eggs inside the shell until it hatches, and then the young snail is released. This snail lives 3-5 years, compared to a normal one year lifespan of other freshwater snails.

Byron.


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