# Mystery Snail Eggs



## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

So, it appears one of my snails is a girl, and it appears she has laid a ton of eggs in my tank. :roll: Well, I guess my question is... now what? If I wanted to raise the babies how long does it normally take for them to grow until they hatch? What should I do with them after they hatch? I think I'll just try to rehome them on here (I don't have use for them), at what age could they be "rehomed"? Or, are they likely to get eaten by my ADF anyway and I don't have to worry about it? Or, would I even be more lucky and they are not likely to hatch?


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## shellieca (Jul 12, 2012)

I never let my eggs hatch so I can't answer your questions about what to do with them. I would talk to your LFS & see if they'll take them & give you store credit. If the eggs are in an area where they stay moist they should hatch but if they dry out they won't from my understanding. I believe I was told it takes 7-10 days but don't quote me as I said I don't let them hatch.


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## Silverfang (Mar 25, 2011)

One question for you. Do you have the time, energy and resources to raise potentially 200 babies per clutch? I would suggest only allowing a small portion of a clutch to hatch.

This is taken from another site about apple/mystery snail. And it gives a fair warning.


> *1. Do you have enough room?*
> Yes, it's wonderful to know that the conditions in your tank have spurred your young lovers into mating and laying. Yet when you consider that most clutches contain up to 200 young hatchlings that will eventually demand a minimum of 2 gallons of tank space each, can you afford to hatch the whole clutch?
> 
> *2. Do you have the proper foods?*
> ...


This is an excerpt from someone who had three clutches.



> Yesterday I finally realized that I was not going to be able to care for them all long enough to get a suitable number of them to the 'sellable' size my LFS wanted. I had 2 or 3 dozen that were easily big enough, but many, many more which were not. I ended up pulling out what I estimated to be about half the number of snails, ranging in size from pea-size (lots!) to nickle-size (a couple dozen) and donating them to the LFS. I also took a handful of pea-size ones out and dropped them in my 23gal tank, which is normally a fish-only tank.
> 
> Today, now that the numbers were thinned out, I took a headcount. First in the 'fish' tank. I did not count every single snail, but visually divided the tank into sections and counted the snails in a couple sections. I came up with between 100 and 150 pea-size snails! That was the 'handful'! The numbers I took to the LFS were 3 to 4 times that. There was at least two pounds of snails in the container that I took there.
> 
> ...


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## Riverotter (May 15, 2013)

What color snails do you have? If they are not the wild color, then you can sell the whole egg clutch on ebay or aquabid. Or, you can sell the baby snails the same way.

If they are the wild color, there is someone near me who actually raises them for escargo. Not my thing, but hey, it's an option.


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## TheCrabbyTabby (Jul 7, 2012)

Trust me. Destroy the clutch ASAP. You'll thank me soon enough.


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

Well, the top of it has already dried out (at least it looks like it's dried out, it's lighter in color than the bottom). I do not have a firm fitting lid (due to the heater), and it lets air in and out of the tank (it's just a small opening, about 1/16"). Whoever it was laid the eggs right under the opening. The bottom (the whole thing is about 2" long) appears to still be moist (and luckily far smaller than the top). I would love to destroy it, and had planned on that, but it's a lot harder to do once the time comes. 1) It's gross looking and I don't want to touch it and 2) I feel bad because it feels like I'm killing them and I can't kill things. 

To be honest, I did not expect them to breed. I knew there was a chance, but everyone I know who has Mystery snails has a bunch of them and has had them for years. I kept asking, and they kept saying they never had them reproduce. It's funny, because I even tell customers when they buy two, "did you know there is a possibility they may breed" and everyone always says "yes". It's one of those, it happens to others not me. 

My plan is to find them homes asap. I know a couple people with tanks of various sorts, and then I was going to contact my LFS to ask if they'd be interested. I have no idea what they are going to be. I have a blue snail, black snail and ivory snail. All three have bright and vibrant colors and shells. 

According to what I've found the USDA no longer requires shipping permits on most common aquatic snails. Is that correct?


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## Riverotter (May 15, 2013)

If you get any blue or ivory, I'd be interested in some. My LFS only ever has the black and wild (dark brown and faintly striped) ones.

To the best of my knowledge, if it commonly sells in a chain pet store, you don't need a shipping permit. Only because the chains don't want to be bothered dealing with anything that needs a permit.


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## peachii (Jan 6, 2013)

NeptunesMom said:


> Well, the top of it has already dried out (at least it looks like it's dried out, it's lighter in color than the bottom). I do not have a firm fitting lid (due to the heater), and it lets air in and out of the tank (it's just a small opening, about 1/16"). Whoever it was laid the eggs right under the opening. The bottom (the whole thing is about 2" long) appears to still be moist (and luckily far smaller than the top). I would love to destroy it, and had planned on that, but it's a lot harder to do once the time comes. 1) It's gross looking and I don't want to touch it and 2) I feel bad because it feels like I'm killing them and I can't kill things.
> 
> To be honest, I did not expect them to breed. I knew there was a chance, but everyone I know who has Mystery snails has a bunch of them and has had them for years. I kept asking, and they kept saying they never had them reproduce. It's funny, because I even tell customers when they buy two, "did you know there is a possibility they may breed" and everyone always says "yes". It's one of those, it happens to others not me.
> 
> ...


If you want to break off half of it and send it to me, I'll hatch half of them for my tanks. We have 9 fish tanks and a local LFS store as well. And if not after they hatch I'll happily take about 10 of them.


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## Silverfang (Mar 25, 2011)

I'd suggest you break off a small part and hatch that. Destroy the rest.

Just my opinion.


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

peachii said:


> If you want to break off half of it and send it to me, I'll hatch half of them for my tanks. We have 9 fish tanks and a local LFS store as well. And if not after they hatch I'll happily take about 10 of them.


How do you break it off and ship it without killing them all off? I am still not sure if they will be blue, ivory or black. But, one of the parents at least has to be ivory or blue as there are only three snails in the tank. 

Riverotter, I would be happy to send you some ivory or blue. I've never seen the natural color before. My PSmart carries blue, ivory, golden and black. I've had two golden, but they both died on me, so I've given up on golden and have decided I will stick with the blue, ivory and black (all of which I think are prettier anyway).


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## peachii (Jan 6, 2013)

I found this info on mailing snails. Didn't link to it since it's against the rules to link to another forum.

From what i see on clutches - you just gently snap off a piece and put it in a baggy with a slightly damp sponge. fill with a little air, tie it off and mail immediately. If the clutch comes away from the lid, you can suspend it over the tank and under the lid with a piece of cheese cloth or a coat hanger through it. The babies are going to drop into the water as they hatch. You can sell pea sized babies on Aquabid and ebay - if they are Blue they will all sell. Blue and Purple seem to be extremely rare and popular. i really want to breed blue or purple ones. Pea to nickle sized don't take up to much bioload but after they get much bigger than that, you have to watch the bioload in your tank.

That's just a quick synopsis of what I just read about them. I intend to breed mystery snails, assassin snails and Mini yellow rabbit snails and Maybe regular yellow rabbit as a way to make some spending money along with my assorted aquarium plants now that they are pretty much established. being disabled, i really think this is something I can do well with.

If this is your first batch, if it is still there 48 to 72 hours later and pinkish colored it is probably fertilized. They can lay eggs that disappear after a time that aren't fertilized correctly.




> Never heard of getting snails in the mail? Have too many snails in your aquarium and would like to unload some? Shipping snails is a simple and effective way of offering what you have to others who may not have access to certain types of aquatic snails. It's also a great way to trade for other items that you might be interested in.
> First things first, make sure that that the type of snails you have are legal to possess as well as ship within and outside of your state. There are many different kinds of snails that are commonly found in home aquariums. Most snail keepers know the term "apple snail" or "mystery snail" but really these terms are too broad and don't pinpoint any certain type of snail.
> 
> Some snails are illegal in some states and in others, while it's legal to possess the snails it is illegal to ship them over state lines. Pomacea Canaliculata, otherwise known as baseball snails, apple snails, giant apple snails, and golden snails, are commonly illegal to ship across state lines in the United States but in many places, you can distribute to those within the borders. Another type that often has restriction is the Marisa snail, also known as the Giant Columbian Ramshorn Snail.
> ...


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## peachii (Jan 6, 2013)

Also from what I read, most types of snails that are sold by pet stores don't need a permit to ship. That's vague I know but several articles seemed to say the same thing.


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## Riverotter (May 15, 2013)

I found a couple of pics on google images - this is all my LFS carries;
http://www.theoscarspot.com/download/file.php?id=8739&t=1
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v51/RandomWiktor/newtds.jpg
I keep asking if they'll ever get any colors in but they never do, so I would love some from you (and happily pay you for them) if you manage to hatch and grow any.
While I think they are fascinating creatures in themselves, I still want pretty ones 

There's a pretty good blog on them with some info about genetics; http://snailhobbyist.blogspot.com/


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

Well, they are currently a yellowish tan color. So perhaps they are not fertilized. I do not know exactly how long they have been there. I know they were not there last Sunday when I did a water change. I haven't paid much attention to the tank except to feed my ADF, and drop in some lettuce for the snails. I've been so buys the past few weeks. Anyway, I'll keep everyone abreast of the situation and what happens. If they hatch (and survive) I'll be happy to give any away to whoever would want them. I wouldn't charge for them, because it's not like I paid for them. And caring for them would give me an excuse to avoid working on my masters thesis (lol, I'm so bad about finding ways to avoid it).


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## peachii (Jan 6, 2013)

We all shall be cheering for your Blue mystery snails to get it on!! 

LOL


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

peachii said:


> We all shall be cheering for your Blue mystery snails to get it on!!
> 
> LOL


Should I play some mood setting music? Light some candles?  Actually, it still hasn't turned pink, so I'm guessing it's still not fertilized. It's been about 36 hours since I found the eggs, and all the snails are chilling at the bottom of the tank eating lettuce every time I peak in there. No one is going near the eggs.


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

So, how long should I wait until we know that they are not fertilized and remove them? They are still a yellowish color and nothing has happened.


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## Riverotter (May 15, 2013)

They can take up to a month. If you have all girls, they'll still aly eggs but they won't be fertile.


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## Fabi (May 29, 2013)

i don't have snails recently so srry.


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

We today another clutch of eggs was laid. I'm wondering if the other eggs are molding. They appear to have almost like a white fuzzy growth on them. I think I'll take them out.


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

I pulled the first clutch out, and there were baby snails inside. I tried to save them, but alas... I could not. :-( They were light and dark. So, that clutch had the ivory as one parent and either the blue or black as the other. This new clutch I again have no idea to whom they belong. But, at least one parent is blue or ivory.


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## peachii (Jan 6, 2013)

YAY! baby snails incoming soon.


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

They're here! It looks like we have blues and blacks. I'm guessing this means the black snail is the dad. Ironically, I named him after a goddess, and the other two after gods. They are teency tiny and still hatching this morning. I'm thinking once they reach the size of a pea (in about a month I believe) they will be ready for new homes. Are any of the people who expressed interest, still interested in these babies?


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

NeptunesMom said:


> They're here! It looks like we have blues and blacks. I'm guessing this means the black snail is the dad. Ironically, I named him after a goddess, and the other two after gods. They are teency tiny and still hatching this morning. I'm thinking once they reach the size of a pea (in about a month I believe) they will be ready for new homes. Are any of the people who expressed interest, still interested in these babies?


Okay. So apparently my eyes were playing tricks on me because after staring at them again... they are all the same color. They must get their color later. They're all kinda a whitish color.


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## Riverotter (May 15, 2013)

NeptunesMom said:


> Are any of the people who expressed interest, still interested in these babies?


I am!!

Congrats on your babies, it is fun to watch them grow. :-D


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## peachii (Jan 6, 2013)

I am also interested. Congrats on the babies.


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## Riverotter (May 15, 2013)

Here is a pictorial on how to tell baby snail color; http://snailhobbyist.blogspot.com/p/part-10.html


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## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

Riverotter said:


> Here is a pictorial on how to tell baby snail color; http://snailhobbyist.blogspot.com/p/part-10.html


I still have no idea what color they are they are so tiny. But, I'm guessing soon I will know. There are only three snails, blue, ivory and black, so they have to be at least two of those. 

I'll PM those of you who mentioned interest once they get pea sized. You can have as many as you'd like. There are quite a few of them, although I've read a lot will probably pass away. I've been working on getting some algae growing in the tank to help give the babies some food.


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