Ok I just have to post this because I can hardly believe it. I got an apple snail last July or August. She started laying egg masses on the underside of my tank cover a couple months later. I have always removed them figuring they were not viable. In one instance I gave them to my lfs to see if they would hatch but never heard that they did.

Well there was an egg mass in my tank recently but I just left it for about 3 weeks or a month because I was lazy . Finally I took it off and noticed that there were little holes in the mass. I thought it was odd but didn't give it another thought because most of the egg mass was dried out. Well, I just happened to notice that all of a sudden I had a bunch of blue-grey snails (the color of my apple), and they are big, roly-poly snails not brown and oval like the regular small pond snails. I can't believe that it appears some of the eggs actually hatched! (and are growing really fast)

I only have one apple snail, so there are no males. I know they can store sperm for a few months, but eight??? Do they mate with regular small pond snails (I have a bunch of them) if there are no males around? I would hardly think it would be possible?

I never saw baby apples, they are very cute! (as snails go )

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Niki

4 tanks, all planted:
20 gal tall
10 gal
2 - 5 gal tanks

anubias, java fern, java moss, water sprite, vesuvius, wisteria, red cryptocoryne wendtii
48 Watt T5HO on the 20

many happy guppies
one crabby betta

Wow...that is a long time to store it. Pretty awesome. I can't seem to keep them around that long so I'm a bit jealous.

I like hearing stories of snail longivity. Maybe one day i'll join those ranks.

Well I am knocked sideways. I can't believe it, but apple snails can't mate with anything but apple snails, and if there are no other apple snails there, it must have stored the sperm. Dang. So if these guys grow up to be apple snails, well there goes everything I thought I knew about how long they store sperm. Dang. Can you put up photos? Keep us posted. Little apple snails are tricky, because they need a lot of food and a lot of calcium, so its probably worth putting a piece of shell or limestone or a piece of cuttlebone (like for a parakeet) in the water to raise hardness (they'll even chew on cuttlebone, helps them build a nice strong shell), and make sure there's food around, 'cause they're not as fast as the grown-ups and can't go as far (I'm assuming they're wanted 'cause you mentioned they're cute) Dang. Learn something new every day.

I'm on my way to school this morning but Chris I'll get some pics up shortly. My pH/hardness is naturally high, but I will stick a shell in there too, just a regular shell? I'll get more zucchini too.

I know it's just crazy! If you look in my pics, I posted one of her first egg masses in December, and I had her 4+ months before that. It really has been a long time since she's been 'busy'.

James maybe if these make it I can send you some? Not sure how to mail them but I could try it...

__________________
Niki

4 tanks, all planted:
20 gal tall
10 gal
2 - 5 gal tanks

anubias, java fern, java moss, water sprite, vesuvius, wisteria, red cryptocoryne wendtii
48 Watt T5HO on the 20

many happy guppies
one crabby betta

People mail these guys all the time. The least expensive way I've seen is wrapped in a damp paper towel inside a styrofoam coffee cup inside a not entirely sealed ziplock bag inside a little box. The cup gives a little insulation and keeps the bag from collapsing shut, the bag keeps the moisture in, the (wet, wrung out) paper towel is for moisture, and the snails (there were several) were closed when they arrived, but opened within minutes of hitting the warm aquarium water. I suppose if you used a styro cup with a lid that would give them even more insulation in cold weather...

Thanks Chris for the mailing info! Here are your pictures! They are about 1/2" long at this point...




This one shows the regular brown pond snail on the right and the apple on the left


I stopped by to get a calcium source from my lfs, the store I originally got the mom snail from. The owner said it is highly unusual for the eggs to be viable this long, but there are rare occurrences like this. Anyway she gave me a hunk of hard block calcium that sits at the bottom of the tank like a salt lick for deer. The baby snails have gone and chomped on it often so I guess it is what they wanted. It's not supposed to change the water parameters because it doesn't dissolve quickly, so far it hasn't changed the pH.

The middle pic shows a ragged edge of either the shell or the snail's body, not sure cause they're so small. The lfs lady said it sounded like they were low on calcium (she didnt see the pics so I'm not sure). Maybe someone else knows if that is normal development...

__________________
Niki

4 tanks, all planted:
20 gal tall
10 gal
2 - 5 gal tanks

anubias, java fern, java moss, water sprite, vesuvius, wisteria, red cryptocoryne wendtii
48 Watt T5HO on the 20

many happy guppies
one crabby betta

Aren't they just adorable! :o)

Congrats again. Time for me to get some more myself.

Oh! Cute! No, those little fringe like projections along the leading edge of the shell? I've seen those on my really young snails, those are part of the flesh, not the shell, I think they're normal, part of the shell building membrane maybe?, maybe because they're growing so fast at this age? The block calcium sounds great.

Thanks Chris for the info on the fringe on the shell edge...I'm glad it is normal development. I hope they make it! They certainly look to be in good shape. There are 6 larger babies and 2 small ones. I took all the common pond snails out of that tank so they wouldn't compete for the food.

How much do snails contribute to the bioload? Are they considered the same output of ammonia as a fish? I have never counted my big snail as a fish but now with a bunch more in there, I'm wondering how quickly things will build up. I'll watch the parameters carefully.

__________________
Niki

4 tanks, all planted:
20 gal tall
10 gal
2 - 5 gal tanks

anubias, java fern, java moss, water sprite, vesuvius, wisteria, red cryptocoryne wendtii
48 Watt T5HO on the 20

many happy guppies
one crabby betta

I do count them the same as a fish of similar mass, although I guess they can breathe air, so there are differences, but they still put the other kinds of waste in the water. Still, baby snails slowly growing will give the biofilter plenty of time to adjust, so they shouldn't cause much of an ammonia spike. The only time they do is when one dies, 'cause sometimes people wait a long time to see if they're just sleeping or dormant and all the while the snail is dead in its shell.

That's really interesting, your snail had viable eggs after so long. How are the little ones doing?

They are all doing great! I have a total of 10, and they are getting big really fast. Unfortunately for some wierd reason the mother snail that laid the eggs died yesterday. I have no idea why. She looked healthy enough, and I figured I was feeding enough (clearly the babies are getting big). Maybe the babies ate most of the food though. I thought mom was getting enough but maybe not :(

I would say they are almost ready to move to new homes. I will post pics when they are ready to go...

__________________
Niki

4 tanks, all planted:
20 gal tall
10 gal
2 - 5 gal tanks

anubias, java fern, java moss, water sprite, vesuvius, wisteria, red cryptocoryne wendtii
48 Watt T5HO on the 20

many happy guppies
one crabby betta

Snails don't live forever. Even in the best possible conditions, after a few years an old snail will die. I'm guessing from everything I've heard about how you keep them and how fast the babies are growing that conditions are great in your tank and that the old girl was just old. Maybe this is why she kicked out a fertile egg clutch after such a long time - she was getting to the end of the line and it was a last hurrah. My condolences, I know you enjoyed having her around.

I agree, it sounds like your conditions are great, likely your snail died of natural causes.

You're still here, Niki? Haven't seen you around in a while.

Sorry about your snail. At least she left you some gifts before she passed.

Thanks guys. Yeah I was sorry to see her go but yes you're right, I have quite a few new ones to carry on...

Ben yeah I'm still here but not much! Last 3 weeks of this semester and I'm going crazy with homework. Professors have to catch up at the end and they load us up with work and tests. My poor house is a wreck. Not long to go though! Don't worry I'm keeping up on my PWC's!

__________________
Niki

4 tanks, all planted:
20 gal tall
10 gal
2 - 5 gal tanks

anubias, java fern, java moss, water sprite, vesuvius, wisteria, red cryptocoryne wendtii
48 Watt T5HO on the 20

many happy guppies
one crabby betta