How many inverts

[TWINYTWIN]

How many inverts are to much. I currently have a 12g dx nano cube with 4 bumble bee snail, 2 fighting conchs, 2 dwarf zebra crabs, 2 dwarf red tip crabs, 1 electric blue leg, and 1 dwarf blue leg. Could I add more or is this enough. I would like to add 1 more electric blue leg, and 1 more dwarf blue leg.

Thanks

 

[drty811]

you could add a few more blue legs..... the only other thing is about the conchs, they really need a bigger sand bed to survive like in a larger tank. nano sand beds cant produce enough food for them. JMO and what ive heard

 

[skipm]

A good substitute for the conchs would be nassarious snails to keep the sandbed tidy, they are excellent sand cleaners/stirrers that are usually buried in the sand until they smell food then here they come.
The best way to determine if you can have more inverts would be by how much food is available for them, if waht you have is keeping the tank nice and tidy then adding more would cause a food shortage. The key is to find out just how many you need without overdoing it. BTW, bumblebee snails aren't good cleaners, they don't eat algae but are carnivores. I like margarita, astrea, trochus, and cerith snails for cleaners. Turbos are excellent cleaners but they tend to knock things over all of the time in a nano kinda like a bulldozer. HTH, Skip

 

[Abarnswell]

A good substitute for the conchs would be nassarious snails to keep the sandbed tidy, they are excellent sand cleaners/stirrers

I second the vote for Nassarius snails. They are extremely valuable in that they stir up the sand and keep it healthy and aerated. Plus they are fun to watch. One minute they are there, and then poof! They go sand diving and they're gone in seconds. The only sign of them is their little periscope sticking up out of the sand.

Bumbles bees are cute, but as Skip said, they are carnivores. They will go after your other inverts.

 

[reefman23]

Just a note...along with Abarnswells post. I was studying Shimeks "Marine Invertebrates" book and read about bumblebee snails (Engina mendicaria). It surprised me when it said that it is a predatory snail that will prey on beneficial animals in live snad and in live rock. It says, "It is sold as and acts as a scavenger that will consume uneaten meaty food or carrion. However, an Engina individual will also prey on beneficial polychaetes and other snails in captivity. In tanks with sand beds, it is likely to eat sand-dwelling worms." It notes that it is a "questionable addition to a reef tank". I personally don't have any of these, what do you guys think?


Twinytwin, i definetly agree with the others in that nassarius are a great addition, and maybe a pair of turbo snails and cerith snails are also a good choice

 

[incysor]

Good info all around in this thread.

I think bumble bee snails are pretty, and in a larger reef tank, the amount of damage a couple could do is probably pretty minimal. Although I still won't add them, cause I don't think they're THAT flashy/pretty. I think they're a bad choice for nanos though.

B

 

[drty811]

B,
are you talking about bubble bees or the fighting conchs? cause i have like six BB snails in my ten.

 

[incysor]

B,
are you talking about bubble bees or the fighting conchs? cause i have like six BB snails in my ten.

Bumble bees. They're carnivorous, predatory snails. They don't eat algae, and will kill your other algae eating snails if they can catch them.

They also can go after small worms, etc...

Like I said, having a couple in a large tank they probably won't be able to do much overall damage, and they will eat meaty detritus, so they can be helpful. But they're small enough that in a large tank they'll be overlooked or rarely seen so I haven't ever bought any of them. Since a nano should be fed more sparingly, there shouldn't be that much meaty detritus for them, so they're gonna go hunting, and in a small environment the impact can/will be larger than it would be in a big tank.

B

 

[drty811]

never had a problem with the BB's, hope i dont. thansk B

 

[TWINYTWIN]

thank you all for the info...so far i havent had a problem with my bb snail but i will be keeping an eye on them.

 

[Chubosco]

My humble guess is your conchs are walking wounded right now. They will be dead shortly. Research not only for the hobby and the living species you buy, but also to save your money. My recent example was to buy a beautiful vietcong (yeah I'm that generation) clam. It lived three weeks. I then read that clams (this was written by a guy with a PH'D in Marine Biology) must consume their body weight 7-8 times a day to live a healthy life. In a nano it ain't happening. They starve to death like your conchs and mine did. Sometimes I think I have killed half the ocean. I'm not really mean...just really stupid. So many funerals and so little time.