1 X Assassin Snail
These are great if you want to get rid of any unwanted snails that are eating your aquarium plants.
The freshwater assassin snail is typically found throughout southeast Asia, ranging from Malaysia to Thailand. They are also found on the island of Sumatra in Lake Toba. Assassin snails do not have a preferred body of water–they are found in many types of freshwater streams, ponds, and smaller ditches–but favour a soft substrate to bury themselves in. As a small carnivorous snail species, assassin snails hide until food is sensed and don’t tend to feed on any plants around them. Usually, these snails are least active around midday but will emerge specifically to eat. Their conical, yellow, and dark brown striped shell makes the assassin snail an attractive small addition to any aquarium and earns them the bumblebee name. Occasionally, their shell may lack stripes, but this is rare. They can grow to a maximum size of around 1.25 inches (3.2 cm), although this seems to vary depending on the amount of food available and size of the aquarium. Because of this, the maximum size of assassins in the wild is often larger. This is also one of the few snails that you don’t have to worry about your plants getting eaten, as greens are not part of their natural diet! This makes assassin snails ideal for any small planted aquarium with community fish that won’t try to pick at them. It is also not recommended to knowingly house assassins with other snails, especially their favourite treats: trumpet snails (Melanoides tuberculata) and ramshorn snails (Planorbarius corneus).
- pH level range: 6.5 - 8.5
- Temperature range: 20° - 29° C)
- Water type: Medium hard
Control runaway snail populations with hired assassins! The Assassin Snail, or Snail Eating Snail, is a small, easy-to-keep freshwater invert completely harmless toward fish and shrimps, but quite effective in reducing nuisance snail explosions. It is also extraordinarily eye-catching in planted aquariums, featuring a bright yellow with chocolate brown striped shell.
In the wild, you'll find the Assassin Snail living in clean, fast-flowing streams with sandy or muddy substrates, though they are also tolerant of a wide range of water conditions, including ponds and ditches, making them a hardy addition to the home aquarium. Opportunistic carnivores, the Assassin Snail feeds on both live prey and scavenged detritus. They stay partially hidden under the sediment, and if a snail its size or smaller slides past, they will give chase and devour it. Otherwise, Clea helena is a peaceful community tank resident. Fish are at no risk at all once mobile, and livebearer fry are ignored.
To address an existing population explosion of Malayan live-bearing snails or alike, consider stocking quite a few Assassin Snails, ideally 5 snails for every 15 gallons in your system.
Please make sure you do your research before purchasing any live snails for your aquarium.