Tiger nerite

Vittina coromandeliana

FreshwaterBrackishSnail

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 7.0–8.5
Adult size: 1 in (2.5 cm)
Minimum tank: 5 gal (19 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Solitary
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Beginner
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Very common
Origin: Indo-Pacific coastal freshwater and brackish streams
Family: Neritidae

Overview

Keep them in a tank of 19 liters or larger, on their own or in small numbers, since they live alone and do not need company. They are peaceful bottom grazers and one of the best film-algae and diatom eaters you can add, working over glass, rocks, and decor. Hold the water at 22 to 26 C with a pH from 7 to 8.5, and keep it hard with enough calcium to support the shell. They are very sensitive to copper, so check that any medications or treatments are copper free. They are safe with shrimp and live plants, and if algae runs low you can offer algae wafers or blanched vegetables. They climb and can escape above the waterline, so keep a lid on the tank.

In the wild

Tiger nerites come from coastal streams across the Indo-Pacific, where they graze film algae off rocks and hard surfaces in water that runs from fresh into brackish. To match that, give them a tank of at least 19 liters with plenty of mature hard surfaces to scrape, and keep the water hard and alkaline with good calcium so the shell stays solid. Run the temperature between 22 and 26 C and keep the pH from 7 to 8.5. Soft acidic water below 7 pits and erodes the shell, so this is not a species for a low-pH planted setup.

Good to know

This is a snail in the family Neritidae, Vittina coromandeliana, with a striped shell that reaches about 2.5 cm. It lays hard white egg capsules, but the larvae need brackish water to develop, so it cannot breed in pure fresh water. With good water and steady feeding it can live a couple of years. Most in the trade are wild collected rather than tank bred.

Did you know

Those hard white egg capsules you find stuck to surfaces will never hatch in a freshwater tank, because the larvae only develop in brackish water. That quirk is handy for a hobbyist, since it means tiger nerites will not overpopulate your tank the way bladder or pond snails do.