Mystery snails are as mysterious as the name implies, and taking on a journey of owning one comes with interesting discoveries. If you have a snail pet or are about to, you’d probably wonder how they multiply. Keeping snails requires you to be knowledgeable about their reproduction to help you prepare for their baby-making and the surprises they come with.
Mystery snails are not asexual animals by nature. They are equipped with either male or female reproductive parts that require them to copulate to make their babies. As tiny as these creatures are, their reproductive process is more complicated than you’d assume.
At the end of this article, you will fully understand the mating procedure of mystery snails and what to do when their courting period ambushes you.
How Do Mystery Snails Reproduce? The 4 Major Steps!
Mystery snails reproduce sexually in a highly specific method. There are necessary steps involved before mating is successful, and a few more before a clutch of eggs is laid. Let’s delve into the methods of mystery snail reproduction.
1. Getting the Conditions Right
Firstly, the right conditions must be met. Temperature, humidity, and light duration are the necessary factors to consider for mature mystery snails and potential mating couples. When the temperature is between 70°F and 80°F (sometimes even 82°F), humidity is maintained at 60% to 80%, and the daylight lasts longer than the nighttime, the mystery snails are in the optimal situation for breeding.
2. Pheromone Signaling
Following this, the female snail begins to release pheromones, which are chemical signals indicating readiness for mating, into the water. These pheromones are picked up and traced by the male. In response, the male mystery snail uses its tentacles to detect environmental factors as well as the pheromones released by the female, understanding that it’s time to mate. Afterward, the male follows the pheromone trail in a beeline toward the female. This allows them to locate each other despite the aquatic environment in which they reside.
3. The “Love Dart” or Wooing Stage
After a long journey of responding to the mating call, the male mystery snail performs a rather peculiar act to request consent from the female. He throws a “love dart” at her, hoping that she consents and welcomes him. The love dart is a calcareous (calcium-based) substance produced in the dart sac beside the male’s reproductive organ. This dart stimulates the female mystery snail and prepares her for mating.
4. Mounting and Fertilizing
After the love dart has been injected, the male snail begins mounting. The reproductive organ is located around the neck/shoulder area and not the rear. He wraps himself around the equivalent sexual region of the female and begins internal fertilization. This process may take a moment to complete but is done immediately after the sperm cells have been injected. The mounting process may be witnessed several times, but it only takes one successful mount and injection of sperm for the female to become fertilized.
What Happens To Female Mystery Snails After Fertilization? The Laying Process
Once fertilization is complete, the female mystery snail, now a new mother, proceeds to lay her eggs. After successful mating and fertilization, female mystery snails can take anywhere from 2 to 4 weeks to lay their clutch of eggs. They will crawl up to the surface and lay the eggs above the water in a cheeto-shaped clutch encased in mucus.
In some instances, pregnant snails can hold their eggs for 7 to 9 months before laying them. They do this when the environment is not conducive to laying. This is because mystery snails require the temperature and humidity to be similar or the same as the parameters during mating to comfortably lay their eggs. If they are moved to way colder, hotter, or drier atmospheres, they will hold in the sperm to prevent fertilization or significantly slow down the fertilization process until they are comfortable enough to lay eggs.
What To Do With The Newly-Laid Mystery Snail Eggs
After your female mystery snail has laid her eggs, you have two options: either terminate the clutch or allow it to hatch. Here’s how to do either:
Terminating Your Mystery Snail Eggs
If you’re wondering how to terminate your snail eggs in a fairly humane way, the only method is freezing and crushing them. Firstly, you need to collect the eggs from the tank. You’ll find them stuck to the walls of the tank above the water level or on other surfaces if you have decorative objects sticking out above the water. With gloves on, carefully collect the eggs and put them in a container. Then, place the container of eggs in the freezer.
Once the eggs have been frozen, you can transfer the frozen eggs into a ziplock bag and crush them into a powder using a hard object. Afterward, you can either discard the powder or use it to make snello for your snails as a protein supplement for extra nutrients.
Hatching The Mystery Snail Eggs
Hatching mystery snail eggs is pretty easy but requires a lot of carefulness. All in all, you need only four items:
- A plastic container with a tight lid
- Paper towels
- A spray bottle (only a few spritzes of water)
- And a hatching tub
Firstly, you must use a sanitary container for this operation and place a paper towel inside the receptacle, laying it flat like a carpet. Once it is laid, take your spray bottle and spray clean water on the paper towel until it is properly damp. When this is done, you can gently (very gently) place the mystery snail egg clutch on the paper towel without disrupting the egg sac. The sac is antibacterial and necessary to keep the hatchlings safe and sound.
Once you have successfully transferred the eggs into the container, close it tightly and puncture a few holes in the lid to allow oxygen in. Then place it in a dry but warm area, preferably at the same temperature as the laying spot, and let it be. Do not spray water on the eggs, or else the clutch will ROT AND DIE! The environment for hatching requires the eggs to be warm and damp, kept in a humid environment, which you will achieve by keeping the container closed to trap in the humidity.
After the eggs have hatched, pour them into a breeder box to prevent overcrowding in your tank. This allows you to closely observe their growth before transferring them to larger tanks or distributing them.
How Do I Determine The Sex Of My Mystery Snail?
It’s almost impossible to tell which snail is which when there are two snails of opposite sexes or worse, a lot of snails. They all look so alike in size, shape, and form. However, looking closely, you can take note of the snails that notoriously mount other snails. Female mystery snails do not mount others; only the males do. This may take a while before you can figure it out, but eventually, you will.
Also, if you know exactly what you’re looking for, turning the mystery snail upside down will cause it to bring out its foot which will give you a chance to take a good peek into its shell. Around the right side, there’s a bulge called the penis sheath present in male snails and absent in female snails. You’d need a lot of references to identify it, though.
Can Female Mystery Snails Lay Eggs Without Mating?
Female mystery snails can lay unfertilized eggs without mating, but to produce offspring, they must copulate with a male snail. The female is also able to hold in sperm or slow down fertilization until the habitat is conducive.
If you have just obtained a female mystery snail and she has unexpectedly laid a clutch of eggs, don’t be surprised. She was probably waiting for a suitable spot to lay them. They can delay egg-laying for 7-9 months if their habitat is either too warm or too cold to lay, or if they’re stressed and uncomfortable by a predatory presence. Change of habitat is also a factor for the delay, which could possibly be the case in your situation.
In addition, a surprise clutch of eggs may also be the case unless you inadvertently acquired a bladder snail instead of a mystery snail. Bladder snails reproduce asexually and closely resemble mystery snails.
How Many Babies Can A Mystery Snail Produce After Mating?
Mystery snails can lay a clutch of 50 – 200 eggs. This means that in 2 – 6 weeks, you’d be welcoming that amount of snail babies. This is why most caregivers prefer to terminate the eggs rather than allow them to hatch. It could be quite a handful to cater to them all; there would be a hundred or even more mouths to feed and a tremendous, unimaginable amount of cleaning to do! Mystery snails use half of the day pooping and smearing it over the glass and in the water, which turns the tank murky and algae-welcoming.
What Do I Do If A Snail Egg Clutch Accidentally Hatches In The Aquarium?
Perhaps you thought your snails were the same sex, you unknowingly brought in a pregnant female, or you simply didn’t notice the eggs. Regardless, you now have over a hundred baby snails crawling around the tank, and you’re unsure of what to do! Here’s how to handle the situation:
Contact Local Pet Shops
Reach out to local pet shops or breeders who may be willing to adopt as many baby snails as possible. They might even help you find other stores that can take the rest. While it may be challenging since mystery snails are highly fertile, pet shops are experienced in managing these situations and can offer guidance.
Advertise Them Online
Consider giving away the baby snails. Utilize local aquatic snail forums online, reach out to your contacts, or talk to neighbors to see if anyone would like to adopt some of the snails as pets. There’s often someone interested in keeping a few mystery snails.
Consider Adopting Assassin Snails
Although it might seem counterproductive, introducing assassin snails into the tank can help manage the snail population. Assassin snails are carnivorous and actively prey on other snails, including the baby mystery snails.
Euthanizing
Unfortunately, if none of the previous options work, you may need to euthanize the baby snails. You can remove them from the tank and place them in a container, then freeze them. If the tank is too large or the snails are too numerous or tiny, you can consider draining the tank temporarily while finding a suitable place to keep the other tank inhabitants. Remember to handle any euthanasia procedure with care and compassion.
How Often Do Mystery Snails Lay Eggs?
Mystery snails can lay eggs 2 to 4 times a week when they’re in the breeding period. There’s also no specific time for the breeding duration; when the condition is right, the snails will mate and lay eggs over again. Since the female can hold in sperm till she’s ready to lay, you’d be getting a surprise fertilized clutch now and then till she runs out of sperm! Best to always be inspective of your pet’s tank.
How Do I Tell If Mystery Snails Are Mating?
It’s okay to be confused with what you see your snails doing. Are your mystery snails fighting or doing the baby dance? All you need to do is look closely at where they’re connected; if they’re connected at their genitals which are on their sides, then they’re mating. If they’re fighting (which they rarely ever do) there’d be a lot of mouth contact instead of genital.
Mystery snails also take up to an hour to find the right position for mating. At first glance, it might look like a fight. The difference is that the snails would have more contact with their genitals even in the mounting process than they would with their mouth.
