r/AquaticSnails • u/Ill_Cod8443 • 2d ago
My snail is almost fully out of the water?? Help
Is this normal?? I've never owned mystery snails before and I'm extremely confused. He is one of 3 snails along with a beta in this 20 gallon.
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u/slugtesticles 2d ago
There could be something off with your water parameters or he could just be hungry and looking for food.
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u/BlackCatt_27 2d ago
My nerite does that too, but he’s a lil weird overall haha
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u/bath-lady 2d ago
Nerites actually do that as a part of their mating and spawning ritual because in the wild they travel from freshwater through brackish to salt and back
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u/Lawfuluser 2d ago
I basically trained mine, when they come out I put them back down and after a few days they just stopped coming out, or they do but just go back down
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u/BlackCatt_27 2d ago
Yeah mine also goes back in after a while, some days he spends his day out of the water, and sometimes he sleeps outside - just depends I guess
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u/TheRantingFish 2d ago
That gives me a weird tank project.. what if we used those fish portals people make (tubes that connect to another tank) but made it different water types? I’m actually kind of curious about this now!
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u/BlackCatt_27 2d ago
Ohhhh that’s interesting! I didn’t know that! He also bullies my betta out of his fav sleeping spot so I figured this was another one of those things
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u/RobertCalifornia 2d ago
Could be a female looking for a place to lay eggs. You'll have to remove and crush any eggs when/if you ever see them, unless you have a plan for what to do with hundreds of babies. They lay them above the water, on the glass or the underside of the lid.
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u/DontWanaReadiT 2d ago
Nerites and mysteries leave the water often to poop, lay eggs, or just hang out. If they’re climbing out completely that may be a sign of distress from water parameters
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u/Beardo88 2d ago
They do that all the time, especially if there is some algae up there to eat or to lay eggs. They can breathe out of water, as long as they don't dry out they are fine.
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u/lemonxboyy 2d ago
could be laying eggs, looking for food, or water quality could be off. mystery snails have a lung as well as gills though, so he can still breathe :) it’s interesting actually, in my experience giving them a 15min air bath (just put them on a towel wet with tank water & place them on their side without the spiral) is the best medicine when they seem unwell/are getting older.
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u/Mango-Different 2d ago
Mystery snails breathe air so it could be that. Reasons I know of for mystery to be out of the water: Healthy females want out to lay eggs. Breathing is fun. Escaping a fish that is especially rude. The water hurts (but honestly they will put up with a lot of water imbalances).
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u/HumanPintOfYoghurt13 1d ago
Yours is the exact polar opposite of mine, because I never see Gary poke as much as an eye stalk above the plat substrate, and sometime’s I “lose” him for half a week in there, but he’s still very much alive and just sifting through the substrate I guess
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u/Jolly_Implement2512 Helpful User 1d ago
Mystery snails come to the surface of the water for air ao this is perfectly fine! Could be getting ready to lay and could be giving themselves an air bath. Do you know if your snail is a girl or boy and do you have more than one?
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u/Tabora__ 1d ago
Might be trying to lay eggs. You can lower the temp a lil bit if you don't want them to lay eggs or breed. Mine always lay eggs in the summer because the windows are usually open, so it's a bit warmer than usual
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u/Tricky_Loan8640 2d ago
If thats a mystery, he's ok.. They lay cluthes out of water.. They can breath for a bit ...