Goshdarn these pond snails!
#1
A bit long this, sorry. I started with a tiny tank, 25 litres, did all my research, and cycled it very carefully, and then added a couple of albino corys (love them!) and 5 shrimps. Lovely. Very happy all round. Then when everything was well settled a few weeks later, I bought three little plants from a well-known pet superstore. Big mistake. Within a couple of days I began to see the loathsome shelled vermins.
Then, snails apart, deciding I liked this hobby, I went larger and got myself a Fluval 125 litre. I took several weeks to fishless cycle it, and all was just hunky dory, and I transferred the guys over - NOT the plants, just the guys. Looked good, added a few zebra danios and tetras. Then I noticed the vermins appearing.
To cut a long story shorter, I'm overrun with the b***ers. No plants in the new one, nothing transferred except the guys. So I'm guessing that somehow snail eggs got transferred over on the guys. I try to catch as many of them as possible during water changes, and that's sometimes 50+. But when I look into the tank, they're everywhere, all over the gravel, on the ornaments, even crawling on my gorgeous rabbit snails. Hundreds.
At one time I'd squash them with my finger where they congregate at the top of the bubble stream, until someone said, don't do that, you may kill the snails, but you'll also release any eggs they may be carrying.
Tried all the ideas, including lettuce etc, but to no avail. So two questions:
How to get rid of them once and for all?
Squash or catch?
I would be most grateful for any ideas and suggestions please. Please?
Alan.