Common names: Assassin Snail
Scientific name: Clea Helena
Average Adult Size: 3inches / 7.5cm
Place of origin: Southeast Asia
Typical tank setup: Lots of plants and wood for grazing and providing cover.
Recommended min. aquarium capacity: 24 imperial gallons / 110 litres
Compatibility: Community snail, but could be seen as food by large fish
Temp: 65 – 77 Deg F / 18 – 25 Deg C
Water chemistry: ph 6.5-7.5 Tolerable of a wide range of conditions.
Feeding: Clea Helena’s primary diet is protein based. As the name suggests these snails feed on other snails and invertebrates and can do so in the home aquarium. If you don’t have these in your aquarium frozen bloodworms and shrimp are a good substitute.
Sexing: These snails are impossible to sex as both sexes look identical even as adults. Unlike some other snail types these are not hermaphroditic.
Breeding: Breeding these snails is relatively easy given a good supply of food and maintaining water quality. The only challenge being the inability to sex individuals so buying a small group together should do the trick.
Additional Information: The Assassin Snail is one of the most popular snails in the hobby. Highly sought after for it’s unique behaviour of feeding on other snails, which are seen as pests. For that reason it is usually added after a snail out break has taken place. They need the larger aquariums due to their rather large size as adults and to give them space to forage for food and pray. Although they feed on other snails and fish eggs, large fish can still consider them as food.
Author: Sina Shakiba
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