About the species

The blue ramshorn snail has a white, translucent shell and a darkly pigmented body — the combination produces its characteristic blue shimmer. Young animals often still show the wild-type, leopard-like mottling on the mantle. It is a peaceful, easy-care cleaner that keeps the aquarium fresh.

Facts

• Latin name: Planorbella duryi
• Common name: Ramshorn Snail Blue
• Size: 1–2 cm
• Lifespan: 1–3 years

Behavior

Ramshorn Snail Blue is a peaceful, easy-care cleaner that grazes leftover food, dead plant parts and films before they can foul the water. It is a lung breather and needs access to the surface. It suits dwarf shrimp and peaceful fish, but avoid snail-eating fish, crayfish and assassin snails.

Reproduction

• The species is hermaphroditic and a single snail can found a population
• Eggs are laid in flat, transparent jelly pads of 10–15 eggs that hatch after 10–12 days
• Numbers are governed by the food supply — a population boom always means overfeeding, not too many snails

Feeding

Ramshorn Snail Blue is an omnivorous cleaner and feeds on:

• Leftover food and spilled feed
• Dead plant parts and leaves
• Biofilm and surface films

Extra food is rarely needed, but is appreciated:

• Blanched courgette or spinach
• Catappa leaves
• A calcium source for the shell

Aquarium

• Minimum aquarium size: 20 litres
• Substrate: Any — gravel or sand both work

Difficulty level

🟢 Easy

Recommendation

The blue colour depends partly on the water — in more mineral-poor water the tone can turn duller. Keep GH up and offer calcium for both colour and shell. Ramshorn snails breed readily, but numbers are governed entirely by how much you feed.