Bladder snails vs eggs

[andyroo]

I'm guessing that the question "Do bladder snails eat tetra eggs" falls under the heading of No s#!t, Sherlock, yes?

Ok, assuming so, is there anything I can introduce that will eat the snails but not the eggs? I'm expecting a consensus around "Sorry, you're going to have to pull the system down, scrub & refill"

It's a nicely matured 15gal blackwater system, clean-bottom but for bamboo leaves & a couple of almond leaves, bamboo segment caves & some under-lit & struggling filamentous plants - I've been trying for a hands-off cardinal breeding system, with two fem & a male (expectedly). Snails likely came with the plants and were somewhat under control with daily squishing until a recent holiday/hiatus.

Tear-down & cleaning's totally doable, just a headache as there are native clams/mussels, ostracod & other wee-beasties established keeping tummies-full that I'll likely not be able to distinguish from the snails to salvage. So it goes, and feed-beasties may also be impacting eggs. Note: I've not actually seen any eggs yet.

Alternatively, keep as-is & set up a side-tank for the actual spawning & rearing, as normal people do

 

[BIG-G]

I’ve not had any problems with bladder snails. In fact the only eggs I’ve ever seen bladder snails mess with were the infertile ones.
Others may have different observation

 

[phreeflow]

I asked the same on another forum and the overwhelming consensus was that they do eat eggs and it was with the “No s#!t, Sherlock” attitude. Not sure if it was based on hearsay or actual experience.

However, a longtime hobbyist and successful breeder I know strongly recommended them so I was curious. He actually introduces snails and shrimp in his breeding tanks, claiming they keep the eggs clean of debris and eat infertile ones.

 

[BIG-G]

I asked the same on another forum and the overwhelming consensus was that they do eat eggs and it was with the “No s#!t, Sherlock” attitude. Not sure if it was based on hearsay or actual experience.

However, a longtime hobbyist and successful breeder I know strongly recommended them so I was curious. He actually introduces snails and shrimp in his breeding tanks, claiming they keep the eggs clean of debris and eat infertile ones.

This has been my experience.
All my tanks have bladder snails.
I’ve spawned several cichlid species, corydoras, bushy nose plecos, angel fish even betta and zebra danios.
I specifically witnessed bladder snails cleaning over coryadoras eggs without issue.

 

[andyroo]

WOW, this is quite wonderfully unexpected, thanksthanksthanks - I shall stop murdering the snails forthwith!

Now, how do I get the tetras to spawn... they're now one-week stuffed with rainy-season mozzy larvae, tonight to repeat rainwater water-change with a fresh handful of woody dirt, says Fishdance. Wish me luck.