Trochus burnrubberus - The 'Delinquent' Snail

biggles · 02/24/2014, 03:30 AM

RC Creature Feature - Delinquent Snails

I'm sure many of you are aware of the common Trochus sp. snails used for algae control in many reefers tanks. They make exceptional algae grazers and are model citizens of the reef tank.
There does however exist a sub species of the Trochus order rarely encountered in the home aquarium which although very similar in appearance to the common Trochus sp. is able to be identified by its antisocial 'rev head' behavior.

In the video you can clearly see the Delinquent snail doing burnouts whilst speeding along the front euro brace at speeds approaching 7" per hour. The three normal Trochus snails on the left were huddled in terror in the corner clearly intimidated whilst the fish appeared to be egging him on. These snails can have a ripple effect on the behavior of all reef inhabitants so removal or isolation is the best solution to prevent your tank becoming a snail burnout meet.

Some of you may have unknowingly introduced these snails into your reef and mistakenly think you're witnessing an event related to snail reproduction. Luckily there's a simple test for the presence of a Delinquent snail in your reef, just dip your finger in your skimmer cup and check for the taste of burnt rubber any time you see a Trochus 'smokin' it up on the glass.

sahin · 03/07/2014, 07:15 AM

Missed this thread. Yup, I have the same delinquent species of Trochus...mine went all out...the water turned cloudy/milky...for the first time in my reefkeeping life I was disgusted by the "stuff" in the skimmer cup and just couldnt use my bare hands to clean the skimmer cup.

higorc · 03/07/2014, 07:29 AM

Oh man, never heard about this. "Burned Rubber" smell huh... WOW!

02/24/2014, 03:30 AM	#1
biggles Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Australia Posts: 3,907	Trochus burnrubberus - The 'Delinquent' Snail RC Creature Feature - Delinquent Snails I'm sure many of you are aware of the common Trochus sp. snails used for algae control in many reefers tanks. They make exceptional algae grazers and are model citizens of the reef tank. There does however exist a sub species of the Trochus order rarely encountered in the home aquarium which although very similar in appearance to the common Trochus sp. is able to be identified by its antisocial 'rev head' behavior. In the video you can clearly see the Delinquent snail doing burnouts whilst speeding along the front euro brace at speeds approaching 7" per hour. The three normal Trochus snails on the left were huddled in terror in the corner clearly intimidated whilst the fish appeared to be egging him on. These snails can have a ripple effect on the behavior of all reef inhabitants so removal or isolation is the best solution to prevent your tank becoming a snail burnout meet. Some of you may have unknowingly introduced these snails into your reef and mistakenly think you're witnessing an event related to snail reproduction. Luckily there's a simple test for the presence of a Delinquent snail in your reef, just dip your finger in your skimmer cup and check for the taste of burnt rubber any time you see a Trochus 'smokin' it up on the glass.

03/07/2014, 07:29 AM	#3
higorc Higor Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 341	Oh man, never heard about this. "Burned Rubber" smell huh... WOW! __________________ :.Mixed Reef ~Higor~ • Red Sea Reefer 650 Peninsula • ATI Sunpower 8x54W + 2 Reefbreeders Lumenbar • 2x Tunze 6105 • Skimz SM167 Skimmer • Apex• Current Tank Info: Mixed Reef Tank

03/07/2014, 07:15 AM	#2
sahin Ultimate Reefer Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: London, UK Posts: 8,540	Missed this thread. Yup, I have the same delinquent species of Trochus...mine went all out...the water turned cloudy/milky...for the first time in my reefkeeping life I was disgusted by the "stuff" in the skimmer cup and just couldnt use my bare hands to clean the skimmer cup.