Snail Paint? How to avoid "Where's Waldo" snail edition.

[PaigeIs]

Weird question, but does anyone know of a paint that is safe for snails?   I bought two Nerite snails, and they are very small.  I don't want to lose track of them in the tank.  Is there a safe way to mark them and make them more visible until they get big enough to see easily?   I am concerned that one (or both) may die, and I won't notice until the inevitable ammonia spike starts to kill off fish.  

Please note: 1.  I had no idea the snails would be so small. The last time I purchased snails, they were the size of a quarter, not smaller than a dime. 2. The rainbow gravel is not my fault. The tank belongs to my 9 yr old, and she made all of the design decisions. 

 

[Cinnebuns]

I have seen this question posed before and have never seen any suggestion of a paint that would be safe. The issue isn't just to the snail itself but to the entire tank. Any paint will eventually break down and leach into the tank. That said, there may be biodegradable paints out there that would actually be safe. I just have always seen this question answered with "no" and have never seen a suggestion of a paint which is biodegradable. 

Btw, unlike Facebook, nobody here will mock you for having rainbow gravel. As long as you are keeping your fish healthy and seeking answers to help you make life better for them, that's all we care about. 

Nerites do start that small initially but they do get bigger. You will see a line from this point to any future growth. Anytime they are put in a new environment their shell grows differently. Sometimes it's a subtle change and sometimes it's drastic. Do be prepared that all nerites are wild caught and therefore sometimes they don't all survive. Not all of them adjust well to captive life. 

Here's 2 examples of what I mean by new growth lines. The first one there is a line but each side of the line is pretty similar. The 2nd one it much more dramatic and almost looks like it's an entirely different snail. 

Edited June 15, 2023 by Cinnebuns

[Scapexghost]

One tiny snail dying wont cause an ammonia spike

[Cinnebuns]

On 6/15/2023 at 2:45 AM, Scapexghost said:

One tiny snail dying wont cause an ammonia spike

Oh, idk why I didn't catch that part of the post when I first read it. That's what I get for answering while super tired lol. 

I agree. 1 nerite will not cause an ammonia spike. I have had plenty of nerites die in my tanks and have never had a problem. 

[Biotope Biologist]

I’m not certain the issue is that the paints are toxic. Acrylic paint is used on aquarium decor. It’s just that aquatic snails need to be constantly hydrated and leaving them out of the tank even on a wet paper towel while the paint cures will be an issue.

 

People paint land snails and turtle shells. 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 6/15/2023 at 3:39 AM, Cinnebuns said:

I have seen this question posed before and have never seen any suggestion of a paint that would be safe. The issue isn't just to the snail itself but to the entire tank. Any paint will eventually break down and leach into the tank

Agree 100% ☝️

On 6/14/2023 at 11:11 PM, PaigeIs said:

I am concerned that one (or both) may die, and I won't notice until the inevitable ammonia spike starts to kill off fish. 

The snails seem to small to spike the ammonia, but as an extra precaution you could add some live plants to the tank, because plants consume ammonia.

[PaigeIs]

On 6/15/2023 at 10:08 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

Agree 100% ☝️

The snails seem to small to spike the ammonia, but as an extra precaution you could add some live plants to the tank, because plants consume ammonia.

Thanks.  The tank already contains lots of live plants.  I just want to be able to find the snails

[PaigeIs]

On 6/15/2023 at 9:19 AM, Biotope Biologist said:

I’m not certain the issue is that the paints are toxic. Acrylic paint is used on aquarium decor. It’s just that aquatic snails need to be constantly hydrated and leaving them out of the tank even on a wet paper towel while the paint cures will be an issue.

 

People paint land snails and turtle shells. 

Thanks!  I had not considered the curing time for the paint.   

On 6/15/2023 at 12:39 AM, Cinnebuns said:

I have seen this question posed before and have never seen any suggestion of a paint that would be safe. The issue isn't just to the snail itself but to the entire tank. Any paint will eventually break down and leach into the tank. That said, there may be biodegradable paints out there that would actually be safe. I just have always seen this question answered with "no" and have never seen a suggestion of a paint which is biodegradable. 

Btw, unlike Facebook, nobody here will mock you for having rainbow gravel. As long as you are keeping your fish healthy and seeking answers to help you make life better for them, that's all we care about. 

Nerites do start that small initially but they do get bigger. You will see a line from this point to any future growth. Anytime they are put in a new environment their shell grows differently. Sometimes it's a subtle change and sometimes it's drastic. Do be prepared that all nerites are wild caught and therefore sometimes they don't all survive. Not all of them adjust well to captive life. 

Here's 2 examples of what I mean by new growth lines. The first one there is a line but each side of the line is pretty similar. The 2nd one it much more dramatic and almost looks like it's an entirely different snail. 

I wish I knew about snail growth before I bought my first Nerite snails.  I have a couple of them in a larger tank.  I freaked out when they started to show signs of growth.  I thought they were suffering from some sort of disease or deficiency.  My tap water is like liquid rock, and I still panicked about calcium etc.. Oh well, live and learn.