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Post by patrickmurtha on Mar 15, 2015 19:07:08 GMT
It has been raining steadily for a couple of days here in Queretaro, so I thought I would go to the nearby park, the Alameda Hidalgo, and see if there were any snails about. I didn't spot any Helix aspersa, but in the raised herb and aromatics beds that are a delightful feature of the park, I found many small conical snails, and collected 30 for my habitat. They are now installed and exploring. Does anyone know what this species might be? I am blogging about my experiences in Queretaro at this link: queretaroencantador.blogspot.mx/
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Post by Liguus on Mar 15, 2015 19:34:57 GMT
These look like Rumina decollata to me. They will eat other snail species so I would keep them away from your aspersum.
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Post by muddydragon on Mar 15, 2015 22:02:32 GMT
I second helixPomiata's ID. It's very likely they're Rumina decollata
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Post by robandcath on Mar 15, 2015 22:26:05 GMT
Defenitly Rumina decollata they also eat vegetables and don't necessarily need to eat snails to survive x
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Post by patrickmurtha on Mar 16, 2015 0:23:20 GMT
Thanks, everyone! Live and learn. I removed all 30 of the Rumina decollata from the tank before they could do any damage to my Helix aspersa, and I returned them to the park.
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Cashell
Archachatina puylaerti
Posts: 1,124
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Post by Cashell on Mar 16, 2015 2:54:04 GMT
Cool! I never knew Ruminas lived in Mexico.
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Post by patrickmurtha on Mar 28, 2015 17:39:47 GMT
Defenitly Rumina decollata they also eat vegetables and don't necessarily need to eat snails to survive x That gives me a thought. If I purchase a separate, smaller tank to make a habitat for Rumina decollata, and feed them vegetables and fruits abundantly, will they cannibalize each other, or will they subsist on what I feed them? The idea of cannibal snails is not too appealing to me, but if the decollates can live peaceably together, I'd be happy to have a second tank. Today after a drizzly night, I went back to the same park and found a bunch of Helix aspersa is a raised rosemary bed. I brought nine home. I also found a lot of woodlice, especially on small pieces of bark. Most of my woodlice up till now have been Armadillidium vulgare, the common pill bug, but at this park I am also finding what I believe are Porcellio scaber, the rough woodlouse, which are slightly flatter, much faster, and can't roll into a ball. The ones I've collected are about the same color and size as the pill bugs, but I have also seen smaller, lighter-colored woodlice that may be a different species than the Porcellio scaber, but like them, are not roly-polies. The other day I also collected one small Orthoporus ornatus, the Texas golden millipede. I know there is disagreement about keeping millipedes in smail habitats, but I thought that one small one probably didn't pose much of a threat, and it was a quite beautiful specimen (that when I collected it rolled up into the typical millipede curlicue). In any case, it appears to have already burrowed into the soil. On some excursion soon I'm going to dig into moist soil to see if I can find some earthworms to add to my increasingly lively tank. My many snail babies are growing, but VERY gradually.
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Post by robandcath on Mar 28, 2015 19:40:10 GMT
Rumina decollata can successfully survive and breed on a vegatable only diet, I used to keep a decent sized colony without any cannibalism occurring. Only thing I suggest is feed plenty of sweet potato each feed aswell as other vegatables and fish flakes (goldfish food) mixed with water once a week to make up for the protein x
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Post by patrickmurtha on Mar 28, 2015 20:12:34 GMT
Rumina decollata can successfully survive and breed on a vegatable only diet, I used to keep a decent sized colony without any cannibalism occurring. Only thing I suggest is feed plenty of sweet potato each feed aswell as other vegatables and fish flakes (goldfish food) mixed with water once a week to make up for the protein x That sounds very good! Sweet potato and fish flakes are easy to provide. Would they also nibble on a little bit of cooked chicken or hamburger? Or perhaps moist cat food, which I always have around because I have three cats? Speaking of which, two of the cats, Frida and Remedios, were very excited by the arrival of the new Helix aspersa this morning. The tank lid is secure, so the cats can't get at the snails, but they immediately knew something was up, and were both pressing their noses against the glass to watch the "action."
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Cashell
Archachatina puylaerti
Posts: 1,124
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Post by Cashell on Mar 29, 2015 2:04:30 GMT
If you decide to give them cat food make sure the sodium content is low and that there isn't a ton of preservatives in it.
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Post by robandcath on Mar 29, 2015 9:47:17 GMT
You could try them on raw chicken, as for the cat food as long as it has low salt content they can eat it x
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Post by starcrazy19 on Apr 1, 2015 9:51:01 GMT
Small earthworms do wonders for the substrate, definitely recommend them if you can find some
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Post by patrickmurtha on Apr 1, 2015 15:20:55 GMT
Small earthworms do wonders for the substrate, definitely recommend them if you can find some It should be no problem at all, I just need to get around to it, which starts with finding an appropriate place. Athough I can easily collect snails and pill bugs in my local park and no one minds - maintenance guys have even brought snails TO me! - I don't think I should be digging up the soil there. But there are undoubtedly other spots.
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Post by etana on Apr 2, 2015 5:23:38 GMT
Hi patrickmurtha, just wanted to say I love your posts and I hope you keep writing on the forum.
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Post by patrickmurtha on Apr 2, 2015 15:25:32 GMT
Hi patrickmurtha, just wanted to say I love your posts and I hope you keep writing on the forum. Thank you so much! It is a pleasure to get guidance here. I am still figuring out what I am doing!
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