Breeding Journal, Species: Nassarius cf. pauperi

General
Species:  Nassarius cf. pauperi 
Social Structure: 
Size of Individuals:  approximately 1/4 inch
Age of Individuals:  unknown
Date added to Tank:  January 20, 2008

Broodstock Tank Details
Size of Tank:  20 gallon
Substrate Details:  40lbs aragonite sand; 15-20lbs live rock
Filtration Details:  added sump a week after I started to hold the live rock
Water Changes:  25% per week
Water Temperature:  80F
Lighting:  ambient room light
Lighting Cycle:  whenever I came into the room
Other Tank Inhabitants:  amphipods and bristleworms

Broodstock Feeding Details
Food Types:  shaved cyclopeeze, frozen mysis, and New Life Spectrum marine pellet
Feeding Schedule:  at least twice per day

Spawning Details
Date of First Spawn:  3/7/08
Spawn Time of Day:  unknown
Dates of Consecutive Spawns: 
Courtship Details:  long wrestling matches
Egg Size:  3mm egg case with three approximately 1mm eggs
Egg Color:  egg case is about 3mm, eggs are about 1mm
Egg Count:  three per case

Hatch Details
Hatch Date:  3/22/08
Hatch Time of Day:  unknown
# Days after Spawn:  16
Larvae Description:  tiny versions of the adults (see video)


Larval Tank Details
Temperature:  same as broodstock tank
Size of Larval Tank:  same as broodstock tank
Substrate Details:  same as broodstock tank
Other Tank Decor:  same as broodstock tank
Filtration Details:  same as broodstock tank
Lighting:  same as broodstock tank
Lighting Cycle:  same as broodstock tank
Water Changes:  same as broodstock tank

Larval Feeding Details
Food Types: 
Feeding Schedule: 

Metamorphosis/Settlement
Date of Settlement Start:  March 22, 2008
Days after Hatch:  zero
Date of Settlement End: 
Description of Fry: 

Grow-Out Tank Details
Temperature:  same as broodstock tank
Size of Grow-Out Tank:  same as broodstock tank
Substrate Details:  same as broodstock tank
Other Tank Decor:  same as broodstock tank
Filtration Details:  same as broodstock tank
Lighting:  same as broodstock tank
Lighting Cycle:  same as broodstock tank
Water Changes:  same as broodstock tank
Size at Transfer: 
Age at Transfer: 

Grow-Out Feeding Details
Food Types:  shaved cyclopeeze, frozen mysis, and New Life Spectrum marine pellet
Feeding Schedule:  at least twice per day

Additional Information
Miscellaneous Information: 
After one week I added a 10 gallon sump so I could remove the rock from the 20 gallon tank and see the snails better.

You will be required to provide photographic evidence in this thread of each event submitted for the MBI Program.
If your thread does not contain these photos the MBI Committee will not be able to approve your reports.

Video of baby Nassarius trying to escape the egg casing:

My index finger next to the egg casing:

 
Baby nassarius on glass:


 
Baby nassarius on Carribsea Sea Flor sand bed:


 
Comparison picture with adult and baby nassarius:





 

This is a thread that I was using to document my breeding attempt back in 2008.
 
http://projectdibs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1719

eager for pictures

LOL.....I got as many as I could off the site.
I'll have to search some backup disks to see if I have more.
I added the pics and video in the Additional details portion.

I guess if you want to see 60DPS photos, I can ask Joe to take pictures of his.  He got his starter snails from me.

yup yup!!
 
This is a nice journal for me to see as well!!  Especially with the egg casing and count details as it correlates with the data I've been collecting over the past few months.
 
Gale, have you watched the egg development enough to notice whether or not the third egg is typically a nursery egg most of the time or whether it develops? 

Pelagically yours,
~J      

Joe,
I think in that youtube video above, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgOuvHfIHdE , it shows three fully developed nassarius in the egg case and they are starting to break out.  Most eggs that I've noticed have had either two or one snail that developed.

ah, that correlates to what I'm seeing, typically development of all three eggs doesnt happen.  While nursery eggs is common appearance I cant help but wonder that with different (read, better) nutritional profiles the adults may be able to create fully viable capsules.

Pelagically yours,
~J      

That could be true Joe, but I would assume that your snails get a very good nutritional program because of all the food you raise and give to them hehe.

Just a followup, was looking at the hatch report and the dates aren't making sense.  Maybe it's just because I haven't watched my own yet to document.  Is it really a 6 week incubation period between spawn and hatch?

No.....you're right...
I believe the incubation period is about 2 weeks....
3/7/08 was spawn
3/22/08 was hatch
oops....should have followed my thread on projectDIBS LOL

Collumbellids are about four weeks. It's possible.

--Andy, the bucket man.
"Not to know the mandolin is to argue oneself unknown...." --Clara Lanza, 1886

Cool - update your reports and I'll approve   The spawn date need not match up with the spawn date in the Hatch report, afterall, I may have spawned something 2 years earlier and never tried to rear it and then one day, bam, hatch!

3/7 and 3/22 is close, I'm recording incubation periods ranging from 14 to 28 days dependant on temp and salinity
 
this would put you at approximately 15 days with times not perfectly recorded, in line with my findings thus far!!

Pelagically yours,
~J      

It's really tough to keep track of number of days and times especially with these guya and columbellids because they lay so many eggs that I lose track of which one I'm tracking LOL.
If you notice in the video, there is a red circle around the egg capsule just so I could remember which capsule I was tracking hehe.

yep noticed that
 
Sadly at this point I've got these guys in two's separated sitting in mason jars in water baths....  Trying to figure out how to sex them, the timings, the food requirements, temp and salinity effects....
 
so this is marine biology... how utterly....
 
tedious

Pelagically yours,
~J      

LOL....yeah but you're doing a good job!

Where can I find more info on that "egg casing" I would assume that is man made because my snails lay eggs all the time, but it is just a string of eggs, with no protection.
 
Thanks,
 
Adam

If you watch the video in this thread, you'll see a clear egg casing with three snails trying to get out of it.  I don't know what normal Nassarius eggs look like.  I know Cerith snails lay strings of eggs but don't know about different Nassarius such as Nassarius vibex.

Yeah I saw it... I thought you put it there to protect them, but I guess not.
 
I would like to breed some snails as they all already lay eggs in my DT weekly. I just need to do some more reading on this topic.
 
Thx

These type of Nassarius are pretty widespread in Colorado.  We need to get Joe to bring you guys some starters.  These little guys are great.  Excellent detrivores and they remain very small (less than 1/2").

hrmm remind me to illustrate the way to tell whether or not a snail has a pelagic larval period or not by looking at it's apical whorl.  Nifty Trick I learned from the good Dr. Shimek (that guys full of wisdom!!)
 
As far as getting the snails out Gale, I shipped some out to Chad a few months ago, he's controlling distribution currently.  I've got to get more out to others including Carmie Jo and welll... the list is long.  I gotta get shipping, it's on me at this point!

Pelagically yours,
~J      

Pass down the knowledge Joe! 
That's cool, I've never heard that about the apical whorl before.  I guess I don't hang around the places that the good doctor posts.  Try and get him to check in over here once in a while hehe.

Lol gale, to be brutally honest I cant even take credit for the questioning!!!
 
Brian Plankis at one point pinned down Shimek regarding the Nassarius trying to get a tentative ID and he gave a pretty good description of how to examine the apical whorl (first whorl) of a snail shell to determine whehter or not it was benthic or pelagic.  Smooth and rounded = benthic like our little guys vs. rough and pitted = pelagic like many others.
 
makes perfect sense as the apical whorl is the first part of the shell to form, if spent time in the column one would expect rough and pitted formation wherease within the confines of the protective egg capsule the apical whorl can form mostly undisturbed.
 
I'll try and dig that thread up (no doubt andy may beat me to it).  Truth be told that little gem I blame for me getting into the hobby so much. the idea that you can tell so much about a species simply by observing the first nub on a shell blew my mind... and I've been spinning my wheels trying to get a verified ID on this species since.
 
In fact, it was Shimek that recommended the cf. denotation to point out that we are certain the Genus is Nassarius but we are uncertain that the species is pauperi.
 
and thus my work continues, this little snail has made it into every little aspect of my life.. I have them everywhere, I take notes every day.  This stupid snail is the reason I got into the hobby with such pinache and the reason why I feel inadequate as a researcher.....
 
stupid snail

Pelagically yours,
~J      

I think it's the distance between the first few whorls. If it spends much time in the plankton then the whorl gets elongated because the snail can't grow as much (or it would fall out of the plankton).  That's what I understood Ron to have said.

--Andy, the bucket man.
"Not to know the mandolin is to argue oneself unknown...." --Clara Lanza, 1886

hrmm good point Andy, I'll go back and re-read
 
both situations make sense!  I should probably read into that one a little more (and maybe get some clarification during MACNA) and get that info posted up for everyone else.

Pelagically yours,
~J