Paul B

Advanced Reefer
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(I know, stupid title)
I collected some mud this past october out east near Montauk Long Island. I use the mud to add bacteria to my tank.
The mud is in a 1/2 gallon container and the salinity is very high, off the chart.
Today I looked at it closely and it is filled with local mud snails about double the size of new born brine shrimp.
I can't believe they can live in such salty water. I adjusted the slainity a little and will release them in my reef as soon as they get a little larger. I still have some adults in there from last year.
These snails are so prolific that on some mud flats at low tide, you can't see the mud because of all the snails. They are reef safe and as far as I know, not protected by law. If anything, they are a pest as they clog water intakes all over the place.
I doubt they are great algae eaters as they live in the mud.
I have been keeping them for years and they seem to live on just bacterial slime with little else.
Paul
 

Beaun

Experienced Reefer
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They are very prolific out here on the East End. We have Mud Snails and Periwinkles (sometimes also called mud welks). The mud snails scientific name is Ilyanassa obsoleta. Ilyanassa is an omnivore. A large part of its diet is made up of algae and algal detritus. However, it is selective, preferring certain types of diatoms rather than indiscriminately gobbling up any algae.

They also require meat in their diet to survive and reproduce. This meat comes primarily from carrion and predation on sandbed fauna, including other snails. Besides direct predation on sandbed life, Ilyanassa's foraging is so disruptive that in areas where they are found, amphipods, copepods and worms that would normally be present are absent. To me, this hardly sounds "totally reef safe," and is especially troubling if you utilize a sand bed as a filter or food source for mandarin dragonets or similar fish.

Outside of its natural range, this snail is considered an extremely damaging pest. The threat of their accidental introduction into new areas makes the trend of shipping large numbers of these snails throughout the country even more troubling.

They are also adapted to live a temps around 68 degrees, so putting them in a normal tank means premature death. Its up to you, but I wouldnt fool around with them in a reef setting.
 

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