Are the shrimp and nerites competing for food?

[roygbiv]

I have 3/4-gallon aquarium with 10 shrimp. I originally added about eight nerite snails (purchased from Mustafa) to that aquarium, but I see no sign of them. I think I might have spotted a dead one wedged down in a crevice between rocks, but the others never make an appearance.

The shrimp all seem to be doing great. I even have at least one berried female.

I went out and bought two nerite snails from a local shop yesterday. They are much bigger than the ones I purchased from Mustufa (about the size of plump raisins). My concern at this point is that they would compete with the shrimp for food. I was under the impression that they would help clean the shrimp poop in the substrate, but a few of you have disabused me of that misunderstanding, so now I assume they're eating the same things the shrimp are eating, and I'm worried about throwing the tank out of balance.

I have a smaller aquarium (~1/4 gallon) with four Echosphere rescues in it. They have the other two nerites from the original 10. Those snails are doing great. They've grown and I see them wandering the glass all day. I've considered parking these two new nerites in that tank, but because it's even smaller, I'm very concerned about throwing that one out of balance too.

Any insights into the impact a nerite snail has on a small aquarium in terms of food?

[Dch48]

The snails that Mustafa sells are not Nerites. They are a completely different species commonly known as Trumpet Snails. Nerites do not have pointed spiral shells like Trumpets do. True Nerites will eat the same things as the shrimp and maybe too much of it which is why it's my opinion that no more than one Nerite should be present. The best thing Mustafa's snails do is keep the substrate aerated and loosened up since they spend most of their time burrowing through it. Nerites do not do that.

[roygbiv]

The snails that Mustafa sells are not Nerites. They are a completely different species commonly known as Trumpet Snails. Nerites do not have pointed spiral shells like Trumpets do. True Nerites will eat the same things as the shrimp and maybe too much of it which is why it's my opinion that no more than one Nerite should be present. The best thing Mustafa's snails do is keep the substrate aerated and loosened up since they spend most of their time burrowing through it. Nerites do not do that.

This is great to know. I held off on adding these two nerite snails to either of my small aquariums until I better understood the situation, and I'm glad I did.

I'm still confused as to why the two snails in the smaller tank are so visible, almost always on the glass, but I can't spot any of the snails in the larger tank (granted there are a lot more hiding places). The snails in the larger tank have either all died (which seems unlikely, as that would have spiked amonia levels), spend all their time under the substrate, or just hang out in areas under the rocks where I can't see them.

[Dch48]

The snails that Mustafa sells are not Nerites. They are a completely different species commonly known as Trumpet Snails. Nerites do not have pointed spiral shells like Trumpets do. True Nerites will eat the same things as the shrimp and maybe too much of it which is why it's my opinion that no more than one Nerite should be present. The best thing Mustafa's snails do is keep the substrate aerated and loosened up since they spend most of their time burrowing through it. Nerites do not do that.

This is great to know. I held off on adding these two nerite snails to either of my small aquariums until I better understood the situation, and I'm glad I did.

I'm still confused as to why the two snails in the smaller tank are so visible, almost always on the glass, but I can't spot any of the snails in the larger tank (granted there are a lot more hiding places). The snails in the larger tank have either all died (which seems unlikely, as that would have spiked amonia levels), spend all their time under the substrate, or just hang out in areas under the rocks where I can't see them.

It's probably a combination of the last two things. They produce live young and do so while buried. When and if you do see some again, there very well could be more than before.

[Super Jess]

Mustafa's snails like to come out at night. Check you tank in the evening after it has been dark for some time and you're more likely to spot some if they are in there.

[Mustafa]

Also, the larger tank has more substrate for the snails to burrow into and feed in and also more surfaces to feed from. At some point you'll see them more often because they will have reproduced to a point where they have to even feed during the day (at least a part of the population) on open surfaces to stay full. And, I still do not recommend nerites for Supershrimp tanks because they do compete with the shrimp very well for essential food on various surfaces...and actually outcompete them in that regard. Plus...in a low nutrient tank like a Supershrimp tank, nerites will eat all available food and then just sit there doing nothing...eventually dying weeks or months later of starvation. If you *must* have a nerite, just get one and keep an eye on it. Nerites are bigger snails, and in a small Supershrimp tank they can quickly spike ammonia levels when they die in some corner unnoticed. You do not have that same problems with the Brackish Water Snails sold here...they have much less body mass.

[roygbiv]

Also, the larger tank has more substrate for the snails to burrow into and feed in and also more surfaces to feed from. At some point you'll see them more often because they will have reproduced to a point where they have to even feed during the day (at least a part of the population) on open surfaces to stay full. And, I still do not recommend nerites for Supershrimp tanks because they do compete with the shrimp very well for essential food on various surfaces...and actually outcompete them in that regard. Plus...in a low nutrient tank like a Supershrimp tank, nerites will eat all available food and then just sit there doing nothing...eventually dying weeks or months later of starvation. If you *must* have a nerite, just get one and keep an eye on it. Nerites are bigger snails, and in a small Supershrimp tank they can quickly spike ammonia levels when they die in some corner unnoticed. You do not have that same problems with the Brackish Water Snails sold here...they have much less body mass.

Thanks for this information. I did not add these two nerites to either tank. I have them in a tiny tank (actually just the clear plastic top of a GoPro box, and I'm concerned about how to care for them separately. I tried adding in some of the microalgae, but it died in just a few days, possibly because the water these nerites arrived in (from the shop) was more freshwater than it can adapt to?

GoPro tank for starving nerites

Looks like I'll be trying to set up a third tank, just for these two, if they can survive long enough. I hope they like lettuce.

[roygbiv]

Well, I haven't set foot in my office since mid-March, so I'm sure those two nerite snails have long starved to death. I feel bad about it, but I didn't have a way to know ahead of time that I was abandoning my office indefinitely.

[Dch48]

They may not have starved. Nerites feed on anything they find and can survive for a long time on just biofilm.