ID'ing MTS - El Natural

rehdjac · 06-04-2008, 03:54 PM

Are there other cone shaped sporting snails besides MTS? I can't find any store around me that stocks these things by name. One store has zillions of cone shelled little snails, but they just ride in on the plants and multiply. They sell them for $0.25 a piece. Could these be something else?

Thanks folks!

mommyeireanne · 06-05-2008, 04:17 PM

You have probably found MTS. The latin name is Melanoides tuberculata and there is a cousin that's also found, a 'fawn'. It's also a Melanoides, but I don't remember the rest of the latin name. It's not common. They are essentially the same thing, though. I personally, haven't heard of another type this size and shape. The LFSs call them all sorts of things:
Malayan Burrowing Snail,
Malaysian Livebearing Snail,
Cornucopia Snail,
Horn-of-Plenty Snail,
Philipine Livebearing Snail, etc.....
Go for it.

They are great little guys.

rehdjac · 06-05-2008, 04:29 PM

Cool. That's what I wanted to hear. I'm getting hooked up with some tank rejects next week! Otos went in today, hopefully my algae crew will be in full swing pretty soon!

flagg · 06-05-2008, 04:59 PM

$0.25 a piece is a ripoff for MTS. Look on aqua bid and you can easily find people selling them for a lot less and in large qtys.

-ricardo

rehdjac · 06-05-2008, 06:21 PM

Knowing what I know now, yeah for sure. I'm getting a bunch of unwanted ones for free.

mocha2184 · 06-11-2008, 10:12 AM

.25 each is highway robbery. my LFS gave me 20 of them for free. most shops find them a nuisance so they're usually happy to get rid of them.

mommyeireanne · 06-17-2008, 09:49 AM

Before I found a plant club I bought stuff locally that wasn't available to me otherwise. I didn't sweat it if I figured I needed them. And I'm a cheapskate!

So for the price of a coffee...
Just try to research before you order something online. That is always a bigger expense. Hands down, the best thing we can do for ourselves is to meet other hobbyists. You learn more about everything, have access to trades, can do group orders for what can't be bought locally, etc. I can't thank SWOAPE enough.

p3purr · 06-19-2008, 12:30 AM

PetSmart, Petco, or try a different LFS will be glad to give you MTS. They're a bit harder to get since they're usually buried in the gravel during the day. You don't need many, they'll multiple, how fast depends on conditions and if you over feed the tank.

mommyeireanne · 07-04-2008, 07:28 PM

Add a new name for MTS: Christel Kasselmann calls them dog periwinkles in her book Aquarium Plants. Thought that was cute since they dig.
I had to say that I had a LFS give me some for free this week. That's a first for me. I've asked four times, at four places. I will be giving this store my business. They gave me white MTS, with white background shells. My others were black/black. Not sure if they do reproduce sexually, but if so I've helpeded the gene pool a bit.

KnaveTO · 07-05-2008, 08:06 AM

There are a number of cone shaped snails out there. However any store that charges for MTS is ripping you off plain and simple. All of the new Sulawesi snails that were discovered a few years back are cone shaped as well so is Anentome helena. However the Sulawesi snails and Anentome helena are hard to come buy. Most LFS will not stock unusual snails. furthermore you need to look at your national and state import lists to see if they are available or otherwise allowed.