nerite snails

Dave Schumacher interview (#2)

Dave Schumacher

As a long time cichlid keeper, I have sourced my fish from a variety of vendors – both online and my LFS. I have made it no secret here on the blog that one of my favorite online sources is Dave’s Rare Aquarium Fish. Owned by Dave Schumacher and specializing in African cichlids (mostly the rift lakes), this San Antonio, TX based business is first class. From the quality of the fish to expertly bagged, boxed, and shipped orders, Dave does it right. Some of the best fish I have ever had (and still have) came from him. 

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More on nerite snails

Olive nerite snail attached to glass. Photo by the author.

I have posted a couple of times about using nerite snails in cichlid tanks (search the site for those posts). If you aren’t familiar with them, let me add something that I didn’t mention previously. Though you may upright some snails that you find upside down, don’t expect them to always start moving immediately. In fact, sometimes you’ll see an upside down snail and the aperture will look empty. Neither means the snail is dead. 

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Watch those nerite snails

 

Olive nerite snail (Neritina reclivata) on tank glass. Photo by author.

For those of you looking to add a glass/decoration cleaner to your tank, consider the nerite snail. I’ve posted before about using nerite snails to clean up diatomaceous algae aka brown algae. They are great cleaners, inexpensive, available, and require little maintenance. 

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Reducing diatomaceous algae in cichlid tanks

Olive nerite snail on silicon. Photo by author.

Is your tank overrun with diatomaceous algae, more commonly called brown algae? Or does your tank simply contain more of it than you would like? There are numerous factors that can contribute to an overabundance of this brown film. Mostly associated with newly set-up tanks, even established tanks are not immune. I know, because some of my tanks have brown algae even though the they’ve been established and running for years.

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