# can shrimp eat snails?



## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

I have seen Cherries do the same thing! I am not sure what they are up to.

Mike


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## amanda huggenkiss (Mar 3, 2004)

I posted this over at petshrimp too, and Mustafa's seen the same thing. He suspects the shrimp are going after dying or already dead snails, but I've seen them go after live snails. And the fact that it's only ever ramshorn shells I see suggests that the MTS are able to protect themselves with their little trapdoor.

Fine by me. roud:


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## bigpow (May 24, 2004)

My cherry shrimps like to eat something off the otocinclus' back 
Them (oto) don't seem to mind and only twitch (tickle?) every once in a while


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## SueNH (Feb 25, 2004)

They are eating the slime coat the snail has. I've seen my ghosts pester my big apple snail lots of times and as the skin gets irritated it produces more slime. Kind of rewards the shrimp for annoying behavior. Just harder to see on the small snails.
Kind of wish they did eat a few ramshorns and pond snails.


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## Ibn (Nov 19, 2003)

Not sure about exactly what they're doing. I've always thought that they were just munching on the algae that's growing on the snails' shells. I have never observed the shrimps eating any of the snails.

Recently, I received some MTS which came w/plants and the second that they hit the water, the SAE headed straight for them and started to munch them. :icon_eek:


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## amanda huggenkiss (Mar 3, 2004)

The SAE??? Wow.


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## Ibn (Nov 19, 2003)

Yup, SAE went after them like mad. He just picked them up and sucked them right out. In his defense, I think it was due to the fact that they were dead or dying and he was just cleaning up. I have MTS in the tank that are healthy (larger also) and he has left those alone.


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## amber2461 (Sep 26, 2004)

My SAEs are hopeless, it is the Japonicas which are eating the snails in the tanks (small snails and not the big ones)... maybe I should bring the SAEs for store credit and get something else instead :icon_roll


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## Ibn (Nov 19, 2003)

I've had similar problems in the past w/SAEs especially when they start eating the frozen food that I feed the other fish. Then they stop eating any algae altogether. 

I just cut the food to the tank recently and he has gone back to munching on the algae. He was probably looking for more animal matter to munch on and couldn't resist those dead snails I guess.


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## thegirlundertherainbow (Aug 12, 2004)

*Haven't had shrimp yet..*

but I pulled 2 big mystery snails outta my 20 gal tonight (there's a major snail outbreak in there, but can't get any snail eaters due to kribs spawning)
and put them in my 125 gal for my zebra loaches..Before the loaches got to them..the cories/pearl gouramis/bristlenose pleco TRIED to eat them..but didn't get far..


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## noag (Apr 1, 2012)

Momotaro said:


> I have seen Cherries do the same thing! I am not sure what they are up to.hui
> 
> Mike


hid
m


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## werner_eye (Apr 4, 2014)

I have a bad snail problem in my 8 gallon Aqueon. I can't tell what they are as they're too small yet. They look like assassins but i heard these were reluctant to breed. I wouldn't mind getting a few shrimp to put in there if they would help curb the population of snails, but don't want to overload the tank. I have a small school of thread fin rainbows in there as well.


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## Betta132 (Nov 29, 2012)

Do they have yellow and black stripes? If not, you probably have Malaysian trumpet snails - MTS - and an assassin snail might be able to help.


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## lksdrinker (Feb 12, 2014)

amber2461 said:


> My SAEs are hopeless, it is the Japonicas which are eating the snails in the tanks (small snails and not the big ones)... maybe I should bring the SAEs for store credit and get something else instead :icon_roll


I recently added a bunch of MTS to my tank and I too have seen my amano shrimp going after the snails. At first I assumed they were just going after one that died, but later saw they might be going after live ones too. I cant really tell for sure though. Circle of life I suppose!

....only just realizing how old this thread is now that I'm done typing!


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