How can I breed snails in the aquarium?

Every aquarist knows that freshwater snails are an integral part of the ecosystem of the aquarium. Some snails specially run to the fishes and aquatic plants, and some appear themselves fileplease eggs stored in the leaves just planted aquatic plants.

Almost all snails are hermaphrodites. That means each of them can proliferate in the right conditions. Aquarists do not need to stimulate the reproduction of snails, but to control the population have. The fact that these types of snails, as Melania, finidi and coil grow quickly. If you do not monitor their population, the aquarium will become very crowded.

Today we tell about how to breed aquarium snails how to control their population.

In the aquarium as in the wild, snails are part of the ecosystem.

Useful qualities of snails:

• For them there is no need to follow, but they clean the bottom of the aquarium, dispose of dead leaves of plants, eat up the excess fish food. Some species of snails utilized even dead fish.
• If the walls of the tank there is a green plaque, the capacity necessary to settle the clams. Of course, they will not be able to completely rid the glass from the green flight, but it is significantly thinned.

Disadvantages of aquarium clams:

• Snails are useful when they are few. The abundance of these shellfish begins to harm the ecosystem of the aquarium. Their wastes, make the water dirty.
• Due to lack of food these aquarium dwellers begin to destroy the healthy leaves of plants. There are cases when hungry snail completely dug up plants from the soil.
• Finally, when the clams a lot, then there is a threat to the fish.

The most popular aquarium snails

Shellfish are kept not only for their benefit, but also banal. However, when choosing one or the other aquarists often take into account the ease of maintenance of these clams.

Statistics show that the most popular are the following types of snails:

• Coil. These mollusks are often found in aquariums beginner aquarists. Coil unpretentious and live, even in those aquariums where there is no aeration and water filtration. All they need is food in sufficient quantity.
• Fisici. The simplicity of the content of these snails is very similar to that of the coil. Because of this fizy common is not worse than the last. In small amounts fisici extremely beneficial to the ecosystem of the aquarium.
• Ampulyarii. These Mollusca popular with advanced aquarists. The fact that ampulyarii quite large and suitable only for aquariums with a large volume. In addition, they cannot be kept in aquariums herbalists. These shellfish simply eat all the grass.
• Melania. These mollusks have a shell of a conical shape. They are bred for their ease of reproduction and content. Their peculiarity lies in the life in the soil. Constantly moving around him, Melania improve circulation of water in it. As a result, the soil does not become caked. Their main problem – a very fast and uncontrolled proliferation.
• Helena. It is a predatory shellfish. They give birth with one purpose – to get rid of other uncontrolled breeding of snails in the aquarium. Experienced aquarists like Helen for the fact that these mussels reproduce very slowly. In addition, their population is very simple to control.

How to breed snails?

The generation of the majority of snails similar, but there are some differences in this process among different species of mollusks. Consider the example of the most popular aquarium snails.

Coil

The cochlea coils are hermaphrodites. Enough to get to the aquarium a couple of coils, as directed Zhu will be formed a colony.

Multiply coils eggs, putting them on the inner side the leaves of plants. Laying eggs like transparent growth. The eggs are solid, so there is no fear that aquarium fish they feast on. Most aquarium inhabitants eggs of snails is not on the “teeth”.

In a well-organized aquarium, the number of coils to regulate is not necessary. The fact that they are juveniles for the aquarium fish.

Fisici

And coils these molluscs are hermaphrodites. That is, fizy can successfully breed on their own. One laying fisici lay 20 eggs. Unlike coils, these mollusks tend to lay eggs not on the inner side of the sheet, on the outside, closer to the trunk of the plant.

4 weeks after laying, the eggs are starting to emerge of the cochlea. Clams so small that the naked eye to identify them is very difficult.

Reproduction fisid is recommended to control it. If this is not done, fizy will take over the aquarium. For the regulation of their populations is recommended to run at the aquarium of the catfish ancistrus. These fish willingly eat eggs pending fisid.

Ampulyarii

These molluscs are dioecious. Because the person is not able to determine the gender of a particular mollusk to produce offspring, it is recommended to start in the aquarium a few snails. Further males and females to determine at the time of mating and oviposition, and to remember appearance.

The process of laying eggs ampulyarii as follows:

1. Ready to produce offspring, the female is selected from water and chooses the side walls of the tank and the lid is suitable for the temperature and humidity place. It always happens in the evening.
2. By the place, the female begins to lay eggs. For each egg, large, whole walls are initially soft. Because of this the eggs can easily stick to the glass.
3. Upon completion of oviposition, the female moves offspring in the bunch. As a result, the clutch takes the form of the bunch.
4. The original masonry is white, but once the outer shell hardens, its color changes to pink.

Typically, young growth starts to appear after 2-4 weeks. The ripening of eggs depend entirely on the temperature conditions.

Most of the young entering the aquarium, is dying.

Melania

These aquatic mollusks have two sexes. So their breeding pair malani need and suitable conditions.

It is worth noting that the proliferation rate of melanoma is very high. Enough to leave unattended a couple of these clams in an aquarium for a couple of months, as the newly formed colony will capture it.

Melania are viviparous clams. The female after fertilization, hatching egg, from which later comes the little snail. It is for security purposes immediately buried in the soil.

The females Melania can bring from 10 to 60 kids. The number of young depend on the age and size of females.

Helena

These clams are hermaphrodites. Therefore, for successful breeding you will need opposite-sex individuals. As to determine the sex of Helen’s impossible to have to settle in the aquarium a few individuals. The clams themselves will sort out who is what role does.

Noteworthy is the fact that educated couples begin to stick together. After mating, the female lays just one egg on the rocks. It has the form of transparent pads, which can be seen inside the embryo.

Maturation period of eggs ranges from 21 to 30 days. These fluctuations are explained by the temperature-environmental parameters. Hatched baby immediately buried in the soil.

Regulation of population

As we already know, a large number of shellfish is a serious threat to the ecosystem of the aquarium.

Therefore, aquarists have developed the following ways of regulating the population of mollusks:

1. The mechanical method. We are talking about banal catching clams and feeding them to predatory fish.
2. The thermal method. Eggs and the eggs of molluscs are frozen, pulverized and fed to other snails.
3. Biological. In the aquarium, add the clams Helen. Helena will effectively destroy the eggs of mollusks, and themselves.

Also, there are capable of regulating the population, both chemical and electrical, but beginners and Amateurs they are not suitable – too dangerous.