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Post by Evil Angel on Oct 19, 2012 20:46:16 GMT
Archachatina Marginata Grevillea and Grevillea Striped
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Post by Evil Angel on Oct 13, 2012 16:54:50 GMT
I have heat mats of different brands, but none really do anything to the tank. I've heard so many people warning others off buying old heat mats that I think I'd be wasting my time trying to sell them, as don't think anyone would bother risking it! I use the polystyrene and foil for insulation on the outside, but will defo try bubblewrapping half the lid as the fish tank lids have loads of holes in, so I suppose a lot of heat could be lost there! Hope that solves it, will let you know! Thanks!
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Post by Evil Angel on Oct 13, 2012 13:44:05 GMT
Thanks for the quick reply! I really do think undertank heating would improve things, but my matts don't fit under the tanks in the slightest, and cant stand the thought of throwing out all my current mats and having to spend like £70 on a whole new set of smaller ones.. Is there anything else I could try first?
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Post by Evil Angel on Oct 13, 2012 11:51:21 GMT
Ok, I've been keeping my snails in large plastic fish tanks and large storage tubs, and have been having the same problem with all of them... The plastic fish tanks have heat mats that cover the entire back of the tank, 2 layers of foil, and thick polystyrene, and have a deep damp moss substrate. The storage tubs have 2 heat matts on them, covering both the long sides entirely, holes drilled in the sides to allow in more heat, foil and again thick polystyrene and thick damp moss. So why on earth are all my tanks only 22C-24C warm and between 60-70% humid? It's as if my mats, foil, heat-holes, and polystyrene are doing nothing and I'm really getting annoyed with it! I think my snails would do much better with 25C-30C temps, and 80-90% humid. So I need to know what I'm doing wrong? And if anyone has any advice? I'm just getting so annoyed with it all now... Really don't know what more I can do? Please help! Thank you!
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Post by Evil Angel on Oct 4, 2012 11:44:27 GMT
Achatina Fulica. No doubt about it.
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Post by Evil Angel on Oct 4, 2012 8:23:14 GMT
yep thats a fulica alright!
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 28, 2012 20:49:30 GMT
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 26, 2012 15:54:56 GMT
I'd say he was a garden snail
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 24, 2012 16:04:25 GMT
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 24, 2012 10:43:42 GMT
The dark skinned is Achatina Achatina. The albino is probably Archachatina Marginata Ovum. If it is an Ovum the columella should be yellow to orange. The albino being Archachatina Purpurea is also possible looking at the shell, but not sure how to confirm an ID of those! Anyway, hope this helps!
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 21, 2012 18:35:38 GMT
Yes that's probably the best thing for Aimee as by the sounds of things only has one tank... Whereas I have loads of tanks that I keep on top of each other, so finding enough floor space for all my tanks will be a massive problem so I'm doing my best to avoid having to heat from under the tank. But as I say, for Aimee it might be a good idea, though even heating half the tank I still wouldn't risk using substate through, as I made that mistake back when I had my very first snails! I too expected they would just avoid the warmer area if they didn't feel comfortable, but a couple of the snails still burried in it and got cooked! If I have to do it, I'll be using a heat matt under half, with no substrate, and then an ice-cream type tub on the unheated half of the tank filled with damp moss for them to burry, lay and keep tank humid. I haven't tried this yet, as I say I'm hoping I wont have to, but defo maybe an idea for others to try? For single/unstacked tanks lights too sound like a good idea! Good thinking
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 21, 2012 16:02:11 GMT
I have habistat heat mats that cover the whole side of my tanks to try to warm them up, and I have foil on the back of them to rebound heat, and have pots glued to the back of the foil to help press the mat flush against the tank, but they still don't seem to be heating my tanks enough! So will be adding polystyrene too. Once I took my snails out of the tank and tried having the heat mat under the tank, and it heated it wonderfully, in fact, it heated the substrate so much it would've roasted my snails! so found I couldn't do that either, but if the polystyrene fails me, I will have no choice but to remove the substate in the tank so I can have instead a small matt under half the tank again without the subtrate cooking my snails! But it proved that the problem wasn't the heat mat, but more to do with the fact it was losing heat somehow from being on the side. My mats are bigger and higher wattage than I maybe should have on the tanks, so only thing I could really do is: foil and thick polystyrene on the back, making sure the mat is firmly pressed onto the tank, and try moving the tank to a warmer part of the house! If you plugged your heat mat on then sat on it for a while, you'd see even small low watt matts can get really hot! So I know the problem isn't my matts, but that I am just rubbish at attaching matts lol! I just wanted to say that a bigger and hotter matt may not solve the problem... All I can suggest is, if you can get a bigger and higher wattage mat then try it and/or any of the other things listed above until something works for you!
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 16, 2012 14:05:35 GMT
'The Black Slug (Arion ater) The black slug can he very big: a length of up to 20 cm has been recorded. Its colour is very variable - white, red, orange or grey are all common although black is most usual, often with an orange fringe. There is no keel, and the skin is coarse and granular. The sole is pale, sometimes orange, and the mucus is white. The black slug may rock from side to side when disturbed! Familiar to all gardeners because of its spectacular size, the black slug is rarely as destructive as the three smaller species described above but can cause damage in spring to seedlings of many kinds. Later, when its preferred diet of rotting vegetation, fungi, manure and even dead animals is more readily available, it causes little damage in the garden - other than promoting heart failure if you step on one when feeding the cat at night.' I think that's what he is
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 16, 2012 10:03:49 GMT
Haha they probably have better lives than I do! Most of my collection are babies at the moment so I can keep my number of tanks down at the minute, I currently have 5 tanks holding all my snails, but once they start getting bigger I'll have to up it to 9 tanks. My partner isn't into GALS and see's my tubs as purely eye-sores, and he's getting a bit annoyed with me, whenever a parcel arrives its either 'Oh not more snails!' or 'What have you bought this time...?' lol But as sad as it may be, I've actually found something I'm really passionate about, and while the snails are hard work, costly and taking over the house, for me, it is all so worth it. There are loads of species I would still like to own, but there is only 1 I feel I really need to make my collection complete, it will bring me eventually to 10 large tanks. My partner probably will kill me, but I'm hoping he knows how much my snaillies mean to me and at very least pretend to be ok with it haha! But he's always moaning because they 'all look the same', and because they like burrowing I'm just keeping 'a pet hole', and he's always trying to talk me into selling them all and buying a bearded dragon or something else he considers cool lol. I probably will stop at 10 species, I don't think I have room for anymore tanks than that really, so keeping it sensible, seems a good number to me Especially as I have kids, guinea pigs, fish and aquatic snails to look after too lol
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 14, 2012 16:03:17 GMT
Me too! ;D
Would love to have this painting in my room, with Flutter and Pink Glow either side! <3
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 14, 2012 14:43:20 GMT
Don't really have room to grow these guys up much more so need 'em gone soon! ;D
They're doing well on romain lettuce, peppers, cucumber and carrot, readily taking cuttlefish, and growing really well! PM me if interested! ;D
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 12, 2012 21:16:12 GMT
I've heard that Retics can grow to exceptional sizes...But 212.78 mm!! WOW!
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 11, 2012 21:00:09 GMT
What beautiful snaillies! <3
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 11, 2012 20:28:34 GMT
she could be laying eggs as that does sound like she's making laying spot... Try to leave her alone, if she is laying she will stay in the hole for a day or 2 then lay and come back up looking for food. However, most snails spend the whole day buried, as they are a night-time animal, so should be asleep most of the day anyway! So maybe she's just found a good sleeping spot? But in general there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with her, she sounds like she's just doing normal snaillie things
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 11, 2012 16:50:59 GMT
Acromelanic is the gene behind siamese animals, it makes certain areas of the body darker, so acromelanic snails are a slightly cream colour, but with brown head and eye stalks! Some people refer to it in snails as 'leucistic', but that's not correct as leucistic is a gene that makes flesh a pale yellow. I've come across so many beautiful snails on my quest for more to add to my collection, I have so many, but also so many I still want to add! What on earth happens if I'm never content? And I end up with so many that I'm finally able to take over the world with my own person snail army lol ;D Must also add that I am selling just about everything I own to be able to get new snails, they are a dangerous addiction lol
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 11, 2012 13:59:39 GMT
When my snail collection got out of hand before, I rehomed them all and gave up keeping snails for a while, but then my boyfriend, seeing how bored I was without my snaillies to care for, suggested I start again, and try to keep just a couple different species. So, I planned on keeping Marginata Clenchi, Marginata Suturalis and Maginata Ovum. But I bought: Reticulata Clenchi silver Suturalis acromelanic Ovum beige Ovum albino Ovum Egregia, Edaurdi, beige Tigers And am now adding: albino Tigers, fulica, fulica jade fulica rodatzi fulica jadatzi and am saving up for: dark fleshed tigers papyracea adelinae marginata marginata albino purpurea Quinea I'm drowning in tanks, and the heat mats and feeding are costing a small fortune, and my partner keeps telling me off for loving them more than I love him lol But I have such a love for the snails I just can't stop! Nothing makes me happier than owning these beautiful creatures and spending half my day feeding, tank cleaning, and watching them I know I'll probably have to draw the line somewhere, like before I own so many I could open my own invert zoo, but for me, the money and effort I put in are so worth it, and although I realise I may have a bit of an obbsession, at least my family know what to get me for birthdays and christmas: more tanks, heat mats and sphagnum moss ;D
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 8, 2012 19:22:29 GMT
I'd probably say give them a small heat mat on the tank just to stop them from freezing, giving them plenty of soil to borrow into, then leaving them to it, if they so sleep then obviusly still spray the tank, and put bits of food in every few days in case they wake up. Thats what I'd do anyway
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 8, 2012 13:34:25 GMT
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 8, 2012 13:27:26 GMT
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Post by Evil Angel on Sept 8, 2012 13:20:33 GMT
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