Hey there, fellow aquarium enthusiasts! I’ve been keeping shrimp for years, and one question keeps popping up in our community: do shrimp eat snail poop? Well, I’m here to break down everything I’ve learned about this fascinating topic.
Quick Answer Yes, shrimp do eat snail poop! These little guys are natural scavengers and will happily munch on snail waste as part of their varied diet. But there’s way more to this story than just poop-eating shrimp!
Why Do Shrimp Eat Snail Poop?
Let me tell you why these tiny cleaners are so interested in snail droppings
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It’s nutrient-rich Snail poop contains lots of good stuff like
- Undigested nutrients
- Beneficial bacteria
- Microorganisms
- Infusoria (tiny aquatic organisms)
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Natural instinct: Shrimp are born scavengers – they’ll investigate and eat pretty much anything they find at the bottom of your tank
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Easy pickings: Snail waste is soft and easy to break down, making it perfect for shrimp to process
Benefits of This Weird but Wonderful Relationship
For Your Shrimp:
- Extra nutrition – Free supplemental food source
- Healthy gut bacteria – Helps with digestion
- Natural behavior – Keeps them active and engaged
- Tank maintenance – Helps keep the substrate clean
For Your Snails:
- Population control – Shrimp eat excess snail eggs
- Clean environment – Less waste build-up
- Food sharing – Both species can eat leftover fish food
How to Make This Partnership Work
Here’s what I’ve learned about keeping shrimp and snails together:
- Start small: Add 2-3 snails per gallon initially
- Mix it up: Use different snail types (nerites, ramshorns)
- Feed smart: Give shrimp first dibs on food
- Watch numbers: Keep snail population under control
- Test water: Check parameters weekly
- Create space: Provide plenty of hiding spots
Potential Problems to Watch Out For
Not gonna lie, there can be some issues:
- Too many snails = too much waste
- Competition for food if populations get unbalanced
- Water quality problems if maintenance is neglected
- Possible territorial issues in overcrowded tanks
My Top Tips for Success
After years of keeping both species, here’s what works best:
- Regular maintenance: 20-30% water changes when needed
- Population control: Remove extra snail eggs
- Proper feeding: Don’t overfeed!
- Good hiding spots: Lots of plants and rocks
- Monthly cleaning: Vacuum substrate carefully
Best Snail Types for Shrimp Tanks
Not all snails are created equal! Here are my faves:
- Nerite Snails: Amazing algae eaters
- Ramshorn Snails: Good clean-up crew
- Malaysian Trumpet Snails: Great substrate cleaners
What to Avoid
Some snails you might wanna skip:
- Apple snails (plant destroyers!)
- Colombian Ramshorn snails (too aggressive with plants)
- Any snails sold without proper ID (could be invasive)
Final Thoughts
Listen, I know it sounds gross that shrimp eat snail poop, but it’s actually pretty amazing how nature works this stuff out. These two species help each other out in ways that make your tank healthier and easier to maintain.
The key is balance – don’t let either population get outta control, keep up with basic maintenance, and you’ll have a thriving ecosystem in your tank.
Remember, a healthy tank is a happy tank! And sometimes, that means embracing the weird and wonderful ways our aquatic friends help each other out – even if it involves eating poop!
Pro Tip: Watch your shrimp’s behavior – they’ll tell you if something’s wrong. Happy shrimp are active shrimp, constantly foraging and exploring their environment.
Have you noticed your shrimp munching on snail poop? What’s been your experience with keeping these species together? Drop a comment below – I’d love to hear your stories!
Snails are Great for Cycling and Recycling
The snails will reduce the chances of tank recycling.
Everybody knows that without cycling your aquarium first you should not put any shrimp in it. Shrimp are too sensitive and they cannot live in unstable eco-system. So if you put them there during the cycling process it will be a guaranteed death sentence for them.
You have to make sure that your aquarium is well established before adding the shrimp. At this moment everybody decides to use the most popular way which is fish cycling. Who cares about snails, right?
So, they add hardy fish (which are also called like starter fish or suicide fish) to the aquarium. The purpose of these fish is to produce ammonia that the bacteria feed on. During this time of cycling, there will be ammonia and nitrite spikes. These spikes are extremely dangerous even for the hardy fish. So people leave them in there for 3 to 6 weeks and get the aquarium cycled.
After that people who are new to this hobby, decide that it is time to replace fish with shrimps. They put the shrimps to the aquarium and some of their shrimp start dying. What?!?
Why cycling should be done with snails
They start panicking because they do not understand what is happening and what should be done next. They did everything by the book and it did not work. Why?
Really, why did it happen? The reason is that your aquarium does not have enough waste to keep the colony of bacteria in the filter or it could be that the bacteria colony was not large enough for the added bioload.
Generally speaking, you have the cycled aquarium, but it is new, it is not matured yet. That is why it can be very risky to add shrimps to a newly cycled aquarium. Because you can lose some more shrimp before you stabilize your eco-system completely.
What are the options? Do you have any? Yes. You do have!
The way to prevent that is to add snails to the tank. Snails are pretty dirty in nature. They produce a ton of waste. So keeping snails in a shrimp tank will be very beneficial. They will produce that excess of waste at least in the beginning stages of the tank and they will keep that colony of bacteria thriving and alive.
Snails are absolutely essential for the shrimps because like I said shrimp cannot survive a relapse or recycling stage.
Shrimp eating snail poop
FAQ
Do aquarium shrimp eat poop?
Unfortunately, shrimp do not eat fish poop either.Dec 20, 2023
What eats mystery snail poop?
Are snails harmful to shrimp?
No! Snails are actually the perfect option to add a little extra life to your shrimp tank. Keep reading for a list of 10 of our personal favorite snail species to keep in a shrimp aquarium!
What kills snails but not shrimp?
Do snails eat shrimp?
When the shrimp leave something behind, snails will pick it up. They are a really good cleanup crew. Snails will eat decaying matter so if you have shrimp or fish poops sitting there rotting or shrimp food rotting or a plant rotting, they will eat that.
Do shrimp eat poop?
With over 2,000+ species, I’ll cover the general idea of the topic. First of all, if you didn’t know- shrimps are scavengers. Whether they are in your tank or in the wild, they will spend the majority of their time eating anything that has fallen to the bottom. These shrimps will even try poop to see if it’s consumable.
Do snails eat fish poop?
Snails do not eat fecal matter, including fish poop. They will eat leftover fish food and decaying plant matter, but their primary concern is their need for a lot of calcium for their shell, which makes them consume more than usual and produce a lot of poop.
Do snails poop in aquariums?
Snails in aquariums typically poop along the edges, so it’s important to clean the areas where they poop daily. You can use a gravel siphon for this purpose. To maintain the aquarium, it’s best to spot clean the aquarium daily to prevent buildup and pollution.
Are snails good for shrimp aquariums?
When it comes to snails the first thing I want to get across is 99 % of snails are incredibly good for our aquariums and I really do mean that. Snails will have a beneficial effect on maintaining biological balance in the aquarium. That is why I will give you all the reasons why you should keep them in any shrimp aquarium.
Do shrimp eat worms?
Shrimps will spend their time eating algae if they find any. Living creatures – The topic of shrimp eating poop is bad enough, and now we’re talking about worms. Yes, shrimps will eat worms, clams, snails, crabs, and any other living creatures out there. Insects – Did they stumble upon a dead insect that drowned? That’s food for them too.