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Do fish eat snails2007-11-24 23:11:12

I have an aquarium that used to have a wide variety of snail life. However the more fish I added, the fewer snails I seemed to have, until finally now only my largest snails have survived.

I've seen my eel-tailed (tandanus) catfish eating the snail eggs. My snails were always very rapid breeders, but with two tandanus in the tank, they eat the eggs faster than the snails could lay them. But could they be eating the actual adult snails themselves too?

Besides the tandanus, I also having sucking catfish, male guppies, and some cyprinid feeder fish. Are any of these species known to eat or kill snails?

Also, if so, is it possible to discourage them from doing so, possibly by overfeeding them or something?

Thanks!

Answers:

Yes I am sure that your tandanus catfish are eating the snails. They are solely meat eaters and will eat smaller fish too when they are larger. They do have the strength to suck snails out of the shells besides eating the eggs.

There is really nothing that you can do to discourage them from eating the snails or their eggs. I don't know how much you feed them already but even if you feed them more I am sure they would still go after the snails. This is the nature of these carniverous scavengers and snails are tasty treats to them.

None ot the other species of fish in your tank will eat the snails. If you would rather have the snails I would get rid of the tandanus but within a month or so you may find yourself completey overrun with them.