Tiger Nerite Snails (Neritina semiconica)

These eye-catching snails’ shells have a truly unique and beautiful pattern; they are a lovely dark amber color with small black markings that form encircling stripes.  Additionally, they serve some very useful purposes, as all Nerite Snails do.  They clean algae off of glass, plants, and decorations, they eat hair algae, and they keep your substrate clean and the correct color.

 

Nerite Snails are widely believed to be the single best snail in the aquarium hobby for eating algae.  They are totally safe with any fish, shrimp, or plants, and are completely peaceful.  Nerite Snails require salt water to reproduce, so they will never overpopulate your aquarium (as some freshwater snails are known to do).  They are also peaceful and safe with live plants, fish, and shrimp, making them great for community tanks.

 

This Nerite Snail ranges from 1/2 to 1 inch in diameter.  Most Tiger Nerite Snails will remain around 1 inch throughout their lifespan, but the occasional snail will reach 1 1/2 inches!  They do not eat plants (only algae), so they are perfectly suitable for planted tanks.

 

When keeping any type of Nerite Snails, it’s a good idea to make sure the water line in your aquarium isn’t too high, as these snails tend to climb up beyond the water line.  Additionally, Nerite Snails do not tolerate water with high nitrate levels.  All freshwater snails are very sensitive to copper, so watch out for copper if you use tap water in your tank.