something is killing my snails

[tim000]

what is killing my snails? I have a few blue leggeg crabs, 1 red legged crab, and 6 zebra hermits in a 15g. could any of these crabs be the killer???
thanks

 

[Anemone]

Yes. Any of them could be the culprit. Hermits are very generalized feeders, and though some may prefer certain algae, they won't pass up a free meat-meal. My guess would be the zebras. I've found them to be more aggressive with regards to snails that blue and scarlets won't touch (like astreas, trochus and turbos. The blue-legged seem only to bother cerith and nassarius, at least IME).

Kevin

 

[Joe_B]

1-Listen for the tell SNAP of a Mantis Shrimp sometime after lights out.

2-I have seen my zebra hermits pick-on an astrea that has fallen and is trying to right it self but only if it has been there a while.

3-Could they be starving to death?

4-How is the water quality?

Hope that helps!

 

[Katspaw]

I use to keep on blue legged hermits, with a number of different types of snils, I noticed my snail population going way down, And I noticed those crabs wearing the snails shell. Not I was smart enough to put shells in the tank for the crabs to grow into, but oh no, the little @!#$%^ went right ahead to eat and then steal the shells. I have now only two blue legged crabs in my tank. I missed them

Today one of them was sporting a new shell. Can wait to get them out and give them to someone else.

Tracey