Vermetid snails. Does crushing them spur reproduction?

SamMule

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I've had a few of them in my tank here and there, but never had enough to consider it a "problem". I have had success just crushing the bases as I see them until recently....
I had a few that were irritating some of my acros & Montis, so I went on and eliminated as many as I could find. Now, they are popping up everywhere. Is it just coincidence & I crushed them around a spawning event? If that's even how they reproduce... Or, maybe It triggered one?
Curious about others experiences with this.
 

vetteguy53081

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It does. You want to break the tube at the base and remove Entire contents
 

Variant

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It does. You want to break the tube at the base and remove Entire contents

Just so I get this right... you are saying that if you dont kill them from the base, the mere act of partially crusbing them will cause reproduction?

Like the idea that if you pop a bubble algae that it will release spores (which i think has been debunked now)?
 

vetteguy53081

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Just so I get this right... you are saying that if you dont kill them from the base, the mere act of partially crusbing them will cause reproduction?

Like the idea that if you pop a bubble algae that it will release spores (which i think has been debunked now)?
Yes- correct
You can also place a dab of Gel superglue over the hole and they starve
 

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I've had a few of them in my tank here and there, but never had enough to consider it a "problem". I have had success just crushing the bases as I see them until recently....
I had a few that were irritating some of my acros & Montis, so I went on and eliminated as many as I could find. Now, they are popping up everywhere. Is it just coincidence & I crushed them around a spawning event? If that's even how they reproduce... Or, maybe It triggered one?
Curious about others experiences with this.
Those darn things can spool up pretty quick. I don't know the answer to your question on reproduction. When I was crushing mine, my wrasse would come in and cleanup up any exposed flesh.

I had reasonable results filling the holes with crazy glue. I bought bumblebees too but cannot suggest they've done much.
 
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SamMule

SamMule

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Yeah, I've heard that about the glue too. I considered that, but after my first encounter, am unsure how long it will take to starve em. Might have to go that way though. I have a lot of euphyllia in my tank, and am concerned about using bumblebees, as they're meat eaters. Had an issue with nassarius or whelk eating the tissue at the base of my torches
 

vgliha

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The vermetids may have set up shop in some of the crevices of your live rock and may be impossible to get to. If you have a "mother" (or a few of them) hiding in one of these impossible places, getting the overall population level to manageable or exterminated may be impossible with hands-on intervention. If you can find the "mother(s)" and pulverize them to oblivion, that would be the best start. They're much bigger then their counterparts. They are also brown or a brownish-red color which helps them camouflage well. I found some pictures of them for reference:

20170922_155200.jpg

2-25-2020 9-23-57 AM.jpg

Bumblebee snails eradicated mine to the point where it appears that they are all gone. They are 100% carnivores and their natural prey are snails. They're small and can get into the crevasses we don't even know exist. They are also slow movers so what better prey to hunt then the one that makes a home and never moves out?

The key that I found is quantity. Whatever number you think you might need...triple it. If you have shrimps and crabs, throw in a handful more for good measure. I have a 10g nano tank and originally bought 3 bumblebee snails. After a month I saw no changes. I decided to buy 10 more at the LFS. Within a month I noticed a difference. One day I was studying my tank - I can't even remember how many months went by - and I had the sudden realization that the vermetids appeared to have vanished. 3-4 of the snails ended up becoming hermit crab food but the rest regularly move about the tank - albeit slowly - and if there are any vermetids left, I can't see them. Since I still have so many active bumblebees left, I assume they are keeping the population in check.
 
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SamMule

SamMule

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The vermetids may have set up shop in some of the crevices of your live rock and may be impossible to get to. If you have a "mother" (or a few of them) hiding in one of these impossible places, getting the overall population level to manageable or exterminated may be impossible with hands-on intervention. If you can find the "mother(s)" and pulverize them to oblivion, that would be the best start. They're much bigger then their counterparts. They are also brown or a brownish-red color which helps them camouflage well. I found some pictures of them for reference:

20170922_155200.jpg

2-25-2020 9-23-57 AM.jpg

Bumblebee snails eradicated mine to the point where it appears that they are all gone. They are 100% carnivores and their natural prey are snails. They're small and can get into the crevasses we don't even know exist. They are also slow movers so what better prey to hunt then the one that makes a home and never moves out?

The key that I found is quantity. Whatever number you think you might need...triple it. If you have shrimps and crabs, throw in a handful more for good measure. I have a 10g nano tank and originally bought 3 bumblebee snails. After a month I saw no changes. I decided to buy 10 more at the LFS. Within a month I noticed a difference. One day I was studying my tank - I can't even remember how many months went by - and I had the sudden realization that the vermetids appeared to have vanished. 3-4 of the snails ended up becoming hermit crab food but the rest regularly move about the tank - albeit slowly - and if there are any vermetids left, I can't see them. Since I still have so many active bumblebees left, I assume they are keeping the population in check.
Ya know, I think you're right. My nice orange acan pachysepta came in with a large tube on the bottom of it and I had completely forgotten about it.... Until I read this post. I just figured it was a feather duster of some sort and dismissed it. Has been in the tank for probably a year now. Not sure why it wasn't an issue until now, but you can bet there's a gob of glue over that tube now!
Let's hope that was the only "mother"!
 

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vetteguy53081

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Another thing you can do for vermetid- bumble bee snails will eat them
 
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