Nuisance algae is almost certain to emerge—at least to some extent—in all reef aquarium systems. Of course, the maintenance of good water quality is by far the best way to combat them. However, herbivores present an effective and totally natural means of algae control. Snails in particular are a great choice of algae-eating herbivore. In addition to mopping up unwanted algae, many snails act as fantastic detritivores, consuming accumulations of settled organic particulate matter.
All that being said, there are some downsides to using snails for this purpose—at least some species! Though generally hardy, some snail species have a terrible record of survivability in marine aquaria. Some are fairly selective feeders and starve to death after eradicating their favored food source. Some are extra sensitive to poor water quality. Some are collected from temperate (i.e. cooler) habitats and cannot tolerate extended exposure to the “hot” water of the usual reef tank. Some simply have short lifespans and are typically already on their way out by the time they enter the aquarium trade. Whatever the case, dead snails rapidly pollute the water; this obviously is quite counter-productive when you’re attempting to remove solid organic wastes or reduce nutrients in the midst of an algal plague.
Born to live
Dead snails are almost as annoying, disgusting and detrimental to the health of your reef tank as detritus and nuisance algae. In order to minimize the impact their decomposition has on your system, we suggest the following:
- Don’t introduce more than you’ll have (or eventually provide) food for.
- Don’t introduce so many that it’ll be difficult to keep track of them (i.e. look for dead ones).
- Only introduce hardy, adaptable species.
- Only introduce captive-bred specimens.
Clearly, the idea behind those last two points is that with a reduced risk of mortality (especially mass mortality), there is little chance that you’ll miss a dead snail somewhere. And, even if you do, the occasional mortality won’t be like losing a dozen giant turbo snails all at once while you’re out of town for the weekend.
Fortunately, there are a couple of small—and virtually indestructible–mollusks that will meet all your basic clean-up requirements: The cerith snail and the siphonaria limpet.
Cerith snail
The cerith snail (Cerithium spp.) has become a classic clean-up crew critter. Willing to eat anything from film algae to raw detritus, they are highly valued as a do-all member of clean-up crews. Completely reef-safe, they are far less troublesome than some other scavengers such as hermit crabs. Further, they help keep the surface layer of substrates clean through their constant plowing and burrowing. Unlike some other scavengers such as sand-sifting starfish, they are not known to consume any desirable sand-dwelling meiofauna.
Ceriths live in somewhat unstable, nearshore environments. Their adaptation to this type of environment makes them relatively tolerable of fluctuations of temperature, salinity, oxygen availability, etc. Thus, they tend to flourish in captive conditions.
In aquaria, these snails primarily occupy the surface and subsurface of the substrate. They are often much more active at night. Because of their tiny shell size, they can squeeze into tighter areas as they clean the aquarium bottom. Best of all, unlike some other snail species, they do not knock over small corals as they move over rocks. Unlike some sand-sifters such as diamond gobies, they do not heap sand over bottom-dwelling corals and clams.
Siphonaria limpets
Siphonaria limpets (Siphonaria spp.) aren’t actually true limpets but rather are pulmonate snails. These little guys are dedicated herbivores. They eat most types of algae but are especially fond of green film algae. Like ceriths, they occur in rugged environments and are thus tougher than the average snail. Additionally, because they naturally inhabit wave swept shallows, they tolerate the powerful water currents one might employ in an SPS-dominated system. Even better, their tough, low-profile shells help protect them for harassment by predators such as crabs, wrasses, etc.
Not only are siphonaria limpets long-lived, but they also are capable of reproducing in the aquarium.
From the snail farm
Captive-bred aquarium animals are almost universally hardier than wildcaught specimens. This makes pretty good sense, since these individuals are already fully adapted to captive conditions. Snails are no exception here. One nice thing is that you don’t have to worry about any hard-to-treat hitchhikers that arrive on the shells of wild snails. But the big thing is how much sturdier aquacultured snails are. Maybe they cost an extra buck apiece… Big deal. They actually live longer. What a huge difference in not having to replace them every other week!
And even better is that you’ll never have to worry about making a messed up tank even worse because of a couple dead snails that slipped between the cracks in your rock base. Sure, even your aquacultured snails will die… everything eventually dies. But using tougher types such as the cerith snail and siphonaria limpet will help to prevent those constant, or massive, die-offs that endanger your entire aquarium community. We promise, you won’t ever miss that smell!
Matthew Ussery says
Love using the natural process to keep my tank healthy!
Sydney Monroe says
Great information, glad I read this!
Reefer says
This blog gives a very detailed description on both cerith snails and limpets but for those who need to hear comments and reviews, both work wonderfully in a reef aquarium. I have personally ordered the cerith snails from Algae Barn and they did a great job.
branngarybeary says
I have a lot of ceriths. They are very hardy, and they clean the hard to reach spots. Love them!
superpickle01 says
They do a great job.
Ashley says
I have loads of limpets. Absolutely love them.
williamscronce09 says
Thinking about getting some
Danny says
usually get a few off frag plugs then they multiply like crazy
Keith Samson says
Love the limpets great cuc
Emily Rhamy says
Never had limpets..good to know
Kevin Stout says
Snails are our friends
Paul says
Love the info
Jim says
Have both snails and limped. They do a great job
Matthew says
Good info ?
matt_armstrong53 says
Good info, love cerith snails
Jason Bohr says
Got some ceriths but need more. They are good workers
missinglink358 says
Algae Barn, you rock!!!
shandriltina says
Great tank cleaners
Alex Jeffords says
I definitely learned i’m missing out on the ability of snails!
eriks says
Ceriths will keep everything nice and clean.
eriks says
Perfect cuc
eriks says
Bring on the limped and ceriths
J Beach says
Cerith snails are great but the limpets I got were so small I don’t know if they are still in my tank
ekersd says
Ceriths are under appreciated for sure. Best overall cleaner IMO.
pumas0511 says
Great article as always. Thanks Algaebarn.
Brooks says
I just ordered some limpets.
Ricks Garage says
Love them until blue legged crab eats them to take its shell
Ricks Garage says
Great scavengers until blue legged crab eats them to take its shell
Ricks Garage says
Never had limpets get very big they disappear
shiba.sam says
That’s cool
shiba.sam says
Very interesting
Lisa says
May be getting some of those soon!
Robert Joseph Mastronardi says
Great overview of the hardiest of any tank’s CUC. Bookmarking!
Robert Long says
I need to try limped because my Bird wrasse likes snails more than I do!
jwhisenhunt81 says
I had some ceriths and those mofo’s reproduced like crazy… it was actually kind of annoying as I constantly had white dots all over my glass. I am interested in the limpets though, I have never tried them
Rodney Chupp says
Great detailed info, love it.
Brian Sciolino says
Nice
Larry Rutherford says
I had some limpets once in 28 Gallon Biocube. Problem I had is they were crazy and would crawl up the glass and out of the tank and it had a good good lol sneaky ninjas
Dion Charles says
I have some ceriths but would also love to get some limpets!
Keith Hayes says
Thinking about getting some
hoenigjeff1 says
Nice read
Morgan FishanistaAlmeida says
I have a tank for growing limpets! Love em.
hallgirl1968 says
I have limpets i need snails
Jeffrey Ramirez says
Just what I need to help my existing cleaning crew!
zachary_3 says
i never knew people put limpets in their tank before this. interesting ?
zachary_3 says
i never knew people put limpets in their tank before this. interesting ?
zachary_3 says
?
Ragnar says
Dead snails are annoying
Shelby Foss says
Need some limpets
Tyler says
I love Cerith snails
jhoffman says
Great info!
Mark Rivera says
I use both in my system and they do a great job.
Cynthia Ehlers says
Nice to have the info
Dallas Tippie says
I need limpets!
Winston VanEssendelft says
Love my Cerith Snails but ive never heard of limpets im gonna have to try them out!!
chell slayton says
I currently have Cerinths and Limpets, they are great for a tank.
Scott Schuette says
Love Cerith snails! They are a great team member of my cuc!
Jacey Kirkpatrick says
Need to get some of these!
spatzerbrian says
learning more and more every day good read
Dan says
Never thought snails would be so important. Learning alot moving from freahwater to saltwater.
Leo Yurek says
I do need to add to my cuc; perhaps both verity and limpets.
Leo Yurek says
Ceriths