# Types of Malaysian Trumpet Snails (MTS)?



## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

Hello everyone! Happy Holidays to all!  Lately, I've been on a snail craze and I've become very interested in Malaysian Trumpet Snails or I guess broadly, Melanoides species!  From what I understand, there are at least four different Malaysian Trumpet Snail (MTS) species or types and I was wondering if anyone knew if there were more? From what I have seen online, I've seen the standard red ribbon MTS, quilted MTS, and MTS in shades of solid brown to jade green.

Does anyone have different MTS or Melania species in their tanks? And if so, what kinds do you have? And do they interbreed? I would especially love to find some Melanoides granifera! :hihi:

Here are examples of different Melanoides species or MTS!


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## devilduck (May 9, 2012)

I've seen a very spiked shelled variety too. Seems they are a variation of the one on the far left.


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## sewoeno (Apr 12, 2014)

i have the spiky shelled ones in some of my tanks! they are really neat! i also have all the others mixed in.. i'm not sure if they interbreed but i wouldn't see why not? oh wait, are the spiky the same as Melanoides granifera ?? i think so, they look the same.


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

I think it is indeed Melanoides granifera!  I was at the National Zoo the other day and I saw two types of MTS. I would really like to get my hands on the spikey shelled ones!  Does anyone know a source? Here are the photos I took at the National Zoo of the two variants.


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## longgonedaddy (Dec 9, 2012)

Bugaboo5 said:


> I think it is indeed Melanoides granifera!  I was at the National Zoo the other day and I saw two types of MTS. I would really like to get my hands on the spikey shelled ones!  Does anyone know a source?


They pop up on Aquabid relatively often.


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

longgonedaddy said:


> They pop up on Aquabid relatively often.


Oh really? I was just on there a couple days ago and they had only nerites, standard colored mystery snails, ramshorns, regular MTS, and rabbit snails. But I will keep my eyes open for them!


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## sewoeno (Apr 12, 2014)

Bugaboo5 said:


> Oh really? I was just on there a couple days ago and they had only nerites, standard colored mystery snails, ramshorns, regular MTS, and rabbit snails. But I will keep my eyes open for them!


what do you keep right now?! possibly trades? i can dig out a some i bet.


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## amcoffeegirl (May 26, 2009)

Bump this thread for ID info


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## AEWHistory (Nov 6, 2008)

Oh boy, I really thank you for pointing me to this thread amcoffee! The MTS on the far left is the one I am looking for, I am almost sure. Anyone have this baby? I'd really like to get this variety. The one of the right looks neat as well. Hmmm, makes getting MTS interesting.


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## AEWHistory (Nov 6, 2008)

FYI, there are some listings on eBay that are apparently M. Granifera. I don't know the linking rules from here to ebay, but a common search should provide quick results if you are interested.


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## amcoffeegirl (May 26, 2009)

The dark brown one is the one you like? Hmm- they did breed like crazy in my tanks. I have purchased assassin snails to hunt them down. Do you have a local fish store in your area? They should give you a half dozen if you ask. 
If you can't find any pm me and I will send you some of the kind I have.
Of course maybe I over feed.


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

I have noticed that LFS do have MTS, but they don't all carry the same varieties. I just picked up a single red ribbon MTS snail, which looks similar to the MTS second to the left, from a LFS. I'm currently in the process of finalizing a trade for the M. granifera with sewoeno and I'll be keeping each species I have separately in their own tanks!  Aren't MTS just awesome? Those dark brown ones look awesome too!!! MTS party!


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## dru (Mar 9, 2013)

I have some that are almost purple

Does anyone know the type?


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## Betta132 (Nov 29, 2012)

I have the second from the left. Lately, I've noticed that some of them have small spines on the edges of their shells, at the openings. This isn't something I've seen in the couple of years I've had this species of snail. Any clue what changed? I'm only seeing this in a newly established 10g, but the MTS in it were moved from a different tank, and that tank doesn't seem to have any spiny ones.


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

Dru and Betta132, would you both be able to take photos of your MTS?


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## Ashraf (Oct 7, 2014)

I have found the spiky shelled ones in rivers - they look awesome.


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## HybridHerp (May 24, 2012)

I have the two on the left, some of mine in my one tank get really, really dark in color, almost a solid black. I posted a pic on my 75 thread I can re-post that here a bit later too. I believe it popped out from some rather normal looking MTS that were breeding in the tank and the dark color I guess became the dominant mutation or phase or whatever in my tank. Not really sure if shell color is conditions or genetics with these guys, perhaps a bit of both?

I have never seen the one all the way to the right though, that's interesting.


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## Harry Muscle (Mar 13, 2007)

I have a variation of the one on the far right ... however their shells are missing the point at the end. At first I thought it was shell erosion but even the babies have no point. Here's a picture of mine.

Thanks,
Harry


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## AEWHistory (Nov 6, 2008)

amcoffeegirl said:


> The dark brown one is the one you like? Hmm- they did breed like crazy in my tanks. I have purchased assassin snails to hunt them down. Do you have a local fish store in your area? They should give you a half dozen if you ask.
> If you can't find any pm me and I will send you some of the kind I have.
> Of course maybe I over feed.


Yes, I really liked that variety... I think it is the look of the shell. I'll definitely try my LFS. In fact, there are a few I will try. 

As an aside, I've been setting up one of my old tanks--a 30G--and as I'm sifting thru the old substrate I'm finding dozens of shells of my old MTSs. Most had died by the time the tank was tken down, but I know I could never have gotten them all out and I still feel bad about letting the remainder simply whither away. I guess that's silly.... Anyway, I'm saving the shells. I think I'll let the shells slowly dissolve their calcium back into the water column for new snails to benefit.


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## dru (Mar 9, 2013)

Bugaboo5 said:


> Dru and Betta132, would you both be able to take photos of your MTS?


I will definitely try

I have only seem him a couple of times


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## AEWHistory (Nov 6, 2008)

HybridHerp said:


> I have the two on the left, some of mine in my one tank get really, really dark in color, almost a solid black. I posted a pic on my 75 thread I can re-post that here a bit later too. I believe it popped out from some rather normal looking MTS that were breeding in the tank and the dark color I guess became the dominant mutation or phase or whatever in my tank. Not really sure if shell color is conditions or genetics with these guys, perhaps a bit of both?
> 
> I have never seen the one all the way to the right though, that's interesting.


Now that is sooooo interesting because that is what I experienced. I started with what I thought were the two species on the left but noticed as the generations went by that some offspring looked like a mix. I wonder now if what I had was one species and a mutation? Or was it two species interbreeding. I'll pull some of the shells together and take some pics.


EDIT: okay, I found some old shells and here is what I have from one tank. About 80% are the second variety but their overall coloration seems darker than in the OP. The remaining few I think are the first species. Not only do their shells look different, but the texture is as well. The first species has a series of numbs going around the shell almost like a tiny cog whereas the first species has a shell that is smooth. I have no doubt my other old tanks will yield somewhat different results, but this jives with my memory: that I had three species and the quilted disappeared, the first species was the minority and the second species dominated in huge numbers. 

But here is the thing I'm really unsure about: I started with roily equal numbers of species 1 & 2, so why the disparity? Did they interbreed creating the darker variety I once had? Does species one breed more slowly? Or maybe I just introduced more of one species over time or inadvertently favored one over the other. These are the things I wonder about when I have too much time...


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## AEWHistory (Nov 6, 2008)

dru said:


> I have some that are almost purple
> 
> Does anyone know the type?


pics dru!!! I really want to see this. Maybe you've got a species we hvent seen.

EDIT: easiest way to get a snail's attention is to par boil some cucumber, or the like, and sink it to the bottom. If he doesn't show then he is either eating VERY well off something else or perhaps dead.


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

Harry Muscle said:


> I have a variation of the one on the far right ... however their shells are missing the point at the end. At first I thought it was shell erosion but even the babies have no point. Here's a picture of mine.
> 
> Thanks,
> Harry


HarryMuscle -- the erosion/shaving down of the tips is entirely possible and in fact, is something many of my MTS in my gravel substrate tank suffer from. On the other hand, the MTS in my eco-complete substrate tanks have perfect and beautiful tips and form because the substrate is much more smooth and less course. 

Here are my standard brown ones that are light brown in color. These have decent tips, but I have some in the tank that are bigger that have filed down tips due to busy burrowing business.










Bump:


HybridHerp said:


> I have the two on the left, some of mine in my one tank get really, really dark in color, almost a solid black. I posted a pic on my 75 thread I can re-post that here a bit later too. I believe it popped out from some rather normal looking MTS that were breeding in the tank and the dark color I guess became the dominant mutation or phase or whatever in my tank. Not really sure if shell color is conditions or genetics with these guys, perhaps a bit of both?
> 
> I have never seen the one all the way to the right though, that's interesting.


HybridHerp, I looked through your 75 thread and pulled up this photo:










I like him! Do you have a lot of these dark specimens? I'm so excited that so many people are coming out of the wood works with their awesome MTS! I love these guys and I am just so fascinated by all these various colors!

Bump:


Ashraf said:


> I have found the spiky shelled ones in rivers - they look awesome.


Lucky you, Ashraf!!! I think they are awesome too!!!!:hihi:


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## HybridHerp (May 24, 2012)

I have a decent number of the dark guys but I'm hoping to add them into another tank so that I can make even more of them


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

HybridHerp said:


> I have a decent number of the dark guys but I'm hoping to add them into another tank so that I can make even more of them


I think that is a brilliant idea. That's what I'm doing right now. I have two varieties of MTS and hopefully a third in the future, and I will all keep them segregated in separate tanks!


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## AEWHistory (Nov 6, 2008)

HybridHerp said:


> I have a decent number of the dark guys but I'm hoping to add them into another tank so that I can make even more of them


Please let me know when you get further along as is like to get a small breeding group of these. I think these might be a different species, but at the very least they are a nifty color variant.


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

AEWHistory said:


> Please let me know when you get further along as is like to get a small breeding group of these. I think these might be a different species, but at the very least they are a nifty color variant.


Me three! :wink::tongue::hihi:


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## Sergeant Dude (Mar 7, 2014)

Snagged these guys from one of the tanks at work a couple months ago. Never seen anything quite like them before.

Pardon the algae...I didn't want to throw an unidentified snail in my best tank.


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## Bugaboo5 (Jan 18, 2010)

Wow, that's pretty. Do you have a picture of a live specimen? This one looks dead (empty shell)? It might be Melanoides tuberculatus? Red-rimmed Trumpet Snail?


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## Sergeant Dude (Mar 7, 2014)

Bugaboo5 said:


> Wow, that's pretty. Do you have a picture of a live specimen? This one looks dead (empty shell)? It might be Melanoides tuberculatus? Red-rimmed Trumpet Snail?


My assassin snail is pretty good at taking them out before they get too big so that is probably the best picture I will get. Your ID seems to be right though. Thanks for that!


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## HybridHerp (May 24, 2012)

Bugaboo5 said:


> Me three! :wink::tongue::hihi:



I doubt they are a different species since these appeared in a population of normals, but I'll let you know


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## dru (Mar 9, 2013)

I got a pic but either I am imagining the purplish hue or it doesn't show up well on cam










Love these little dudes either way


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