Malaysian Trumpet Snail (Melanoides Tuberculata)
Malaysian Trumpet Snails are a peaceful, tropical freshwater species of aquarium snail. They can adapt to a wide variety of water parameters, and they make an excellent clean up crew as they remove algae, waste and debris. Often they will burrow within the substrate and surface to consume food and organic waste. They are usually most active at night.
This species of snail can be a desirable addition to the aquarium but can also quickly turn into a nightmare when they start reproducing out of control in your tank.
They display an elongated cone-like shell on their backs. This spiral shell comes in several colours and patterns with the most prominent being beige with dark brown. The common name Red-rimmed Melania comes from the show of reddish spots on the body.
Malaysian Trumpet Snails head is pressed, they have a pair of tentacles with eyes at their bases, the mouth is at the front of the head, and it also has a trapdoor and papillae attached to the mantle end.
They make an excellent clean up crew as they remove algae, waste and debris. Often they will burrow within the substrate and surface to consume food and organic waste.
Photos
| Quick Facts | |
|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Melanoides Tuberculata |
| Other Names | Red-rimmed Melania |
| Classification | Gastropoda |
| Family | Thiaridae |
| Genus | Melanoides |
| Origins | Argentina, Brazil, Central African Republic, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, USA, Venezuela |
| Temperament | Peaceful |
| Aquarium Level | All Levels |
| Difficulty | Beginner |
| Shoaling | No |
| Diet | Detritivo |
| Reproduction | livebearer |
| Lifespan | 1 - 3 years |
| Water Parameters | |
|---|---|
| Water Type | Freshwater |
| PH | 6.5 - 8.0 |
| GH | 6 - 15 |
| KH | 1 - 12 |
| TDS | 100 - 300 |
| Temperature | |
|---|---|
| 71 - 77℉ 21.7 - 25℃ | |
Feeding
You are not required to feed the Malaysian Trumpet Snails as they feed on algae, bacteria, microalgae, leftover fish or shrimp food and dead or decaying organic matter that is in the aquarium.
Sexual Dimorphism
It can be challenging, practically impossible to differentiate males from females unless you are a professional biologist.
The male's tissue seems to be a dark wine-red colour, whereas the female's tissue has significantly less red when viewed through the adapical shell. The females are also larger than the males.