Zoo eating snails?

[Reefer420]

I just saw a snail on my Fire n Ice zoo colony- which used to be a nice and populated small tonga branch is now a thin stick only half covered in zoos. The snail was really in w/ the zoos- is it possible it was eating them??? :irked:

Had a conical shell- came from the gulf of mexico (not sure the exact kind)...

Thanks!

 

[loismustdie]

Yes. I forgot the name of them, it's posted on another thread. Pick them off and kill it. They will eat your zoos

 

[Quang]

Sundial Snail?....watch out.

 

[loismustdie]

Man, sundial snails, acro eating flat worms, montipora eating nudibranchs... it goes on and on. Why do we do this to ourselves?

 

[Reefer420]

could those sundials have shells that are more pointy? Mine have that type of mark, but are much more pronounced of a cone. I am going to get rid of anything I see on the zoos.

Strange this really has to have happened only in the last week or so- but I have not added any snails for a while. I wonder what they were eating before?

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

Pick them off and kill it. They will eat your zoos

I prefer not to kill it but putting it in the refuge or something if possible.

 

[ShaunW]

These are sundial snails. Does it look like this?

 

[Reefer420]

the shells have that marking - but are much more conical- very pointy.

any thoughts as to what else could be the cause? i don't have much in my tank I don't know about - a reef-safe urchin (pencil tip size- I forget the kind, but I asked about it a little while back on the forums), blue leg hermits, snails (most for the gulf of mexico- typical cleaner crew), a very bad mantis who I will get if its the end of me...other than that not much else I can find.

 

[Reefer420]

-bump-
Something's still eating my zoos! Half my Fire n Ice colony is gone

Saw one of my hermits on them today- took him out of the tank. Could the blue legged hermits be the cause? I've had them in my tank since the beginning- and never had a problem until a few weeks ago w/ any zoos being killed off. Could it just have been a rouge hermit or those snails?

Nothing else is being eaten- just those particular zoos! Ideas?

 

[Deanos]

Hermit crabs will eat dying zoas; doesn't mean they are the cause.

It could be a zoa-eating nudibranch.

 

[Rborgia]

Reefer420,

I believe I have the same snails as you... they look like the sundial (the color pattern) but have a longer shell. I had two which I picked out yesterday and threw into the fuge for now.

I'm going to do some searching and see if I can get an answer. I had asked about them some time ago, but I was told Sundial as well...

Here is a pic from about a month maybe two months ago... it has grown and has a friend now. The shells have elongated as well.

Rich

 

[Deanos]

Sundials are not known to have elongated shells. And unlike most snails encountered in reef tanks, the "point" of the shell is carried sideways (like the picture Solbby provided).

 

[Reefer420]

hmmm... so you don't think that my hermits are the most likely culprit?

I wonder why this pest would have taken so long to surface... and leave all but my top two zoo colonies alone! Going to have to keep zoo sitting until I find the cause! btw- a mantis wouldn't be doing this, would it?

 

[Rborgia]

maybe like this one?



http://www.reefs.org/hhfaq/pages/picture_pages/faq_cerith.html

 

[Reefer420]

yes! I do have some of them in my tank...

I think I got some Florida Cerith Snails when I placed an order w/ sealifeflorida.com

are they known to eat zoos? it says on the site they are not known to bother corals...

http://sealifeflorida.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=32&products_id=97&osCsid=a2f539bb73e3cb59d39b3ca58c399749

 

[Deanos]

Those are purportedly reef-safe.

Other possibilities: Zoa Irritators

 

[yessongs]

Dont but snails in your tank if your not sure what they are.
Removing a hermit crab thats eating decaying zoos, in a 16G tank isn't a good choice.
If you have a reef safe cleanup crew, and there on your zoos why would you remove them from the colony?
FWIW, Zoos do die. Can you post a pic chances are its a disease.
JMO.

 

[Reefer420]

i will try to get a pic up- but there is no sign of disease. The zoos are basically gone. Thats it- no sign of distress is surrounding zoos, nothing. I wouldn't put snails i didnt' know about in the tank- i bought a specific kind from a store...cerith shouldn't cause the problems, but I will keep an eye on them.

I would agree about the irritators- but the zoos which are having problems are near the top of my tank- not in a high traffic area and not in any place where spaghetti worms, etc will brush up on them. The zoos on the bottom of my tank seem fine- and they are constantly being harrased by spaghetti worms, etc.!

 

[yessongs]

Cerith wont cause that problem.
I was referring to your first post "Had a conical shell- came from the gulf of mexico (not sure the exact kind)..."
Is this the Cerith or a hitchhiker?
No need to post pics, my tank is 95% Zoanthids if there "basically gone" i know what that looks like.

 

[Deanos]

Listen to yessongs....He is to zoanthids, as Yoda is to the Force: