Feeding snails to cichlids

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Pyramid_Party

Pyramid_Party

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Aug 6, 2008
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Monterey, CA
Hi,


Do any of you guys feed snails to your cichlids? I have some snails in a shrimp breeding tank about the size of a medium cichlid pellet and I am thinking about dropping a snail in.

Do they bite the shells and crush it or just suck the meat out? Is it a good idea?

I got a Yellow and Blue Acara and a rainbow cichlid, I also have (2) Jaguar cats, will they eat it? Thx
 
Depends on the shell structure and thickness. I think they just harass the snails until they die. When the snails die, they tend to limp a bit out of the shell allowing the predators to suck them out. Pond snails don't have trapdoors (operculum) so they're very vulnerable.
 
Oh, and just a curious question. Can puffers crush trumpet snails? Like maybe a big Fahaka or Mbu? Or are their shells even too hard for them?
 
There are all kinds of videos on youtube showing fahaka's eating snails. Shells and all. Actually the videos are a little on the gross side.
 
I've introduced snails into my tanks intentionally several times for cichlids/loaches/botia. I always end up with 0 snails after about a week or two but for that week or two my clown loaches have the times of their lives LOL. The only reason I'd tell you not to add snails is if you're worried about ruining your substrate. Snails may go, but their shells never will and unless you plan on hand picking them out you better get used to it.

and as for the puffers.. No doubt in my mind that they would bite straight through any species of snail. Those things have some ridiculous sets of jaws.
 
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