Planorbis Rubrum – Ramshorn Snail

Common names: Ramshorn Snail

Scientific name: Planorbis Rubrum

Average Adult Size: 0.5inches / 1-2cm

Place of origin: Worldwide

Typical tank setup: Lots of plants and wood for grazing and providing cover.

Recommended min. aquarium capacity: 5 imperial gallons / 20 litres – suitable for Nano aquariums.

Compatibility: Community snail, but could be seen as food by large fish

Temp: 75 – 81 Deg F / 24 – 27 Deg C

Water chemistry: ph 6.5-7.5 Tolerable of a wide range of conditions.

Feeding: Planorbis Rubrum doesn’t require any special diet and will happily graze on algae that grow naturally in the aquarium. They will also feed on left over fish food and dead fish left in the aquarium.

Sexing: These snails are hard to sex as both sexes look identical even as adults.

Breeding: Breeding these snails is really easy and often gives merit to them being pests in the aquarium. If not careful the population can quickly get out of hand. They lay eggs on the underlay of plant leaves but can use aquarium ornaments as well.

Additional Information: The Ramshorn snail is very popular in the aquarium trade and like most other snails it is easily transferred into aquariums when buying live plants. There are different varieties of these snails available in the hobby with the blue, pink and red varieties rather attractive. Care should be taken not to over feed the tank as this is the main cause for them multiplying and populations getting out of hand. Snail killers should be avoided unless all other options have been exhausted first.

Author: Sina Shakiba

@sinapresents