Breeding the Waltoni Nerite (Neritina waltoni)

Neritina waltoni is a brackish-origin Caribbean nerite that lays egg capsules in freshwater, but its larvae require brackish or salt water to develop. It cannot be bred in a freshwater home tank.

Overview

Neritina waltoni, Walton's nerite, is a small herbivorous nerite snail of the family Neritidae of Caribbean origin, recognised by its smooth dark shell. Like other nerites it is a brackish-origin species and is kept as a hardy algae grazer in mid-hard freshwater aquariums.

The genus Neritina comprises marine, brackish and sometimes freshwater snails, and its members share a life cycle in which reproduction depends on saline water for larval development.

Sexing

Nerites are not hermaphroditic and cannot change sex, so reproduction needs both males and females. Because they cannot be sexed externally, a group is kept to ensure both sexes are present.

Reproduction & Young

Females lay hard, white egg capsules on solid surfaces, with each capsule holding many eggs. The microscopic larvae are very hard to feed and require brackish or salt water to hatch and develop reliably; a freshwater aquarium does not provide the salinity they need. Rearing therefore depends on a separate brackish or marine larval phase, not on the freshwater display.

Common Challenges

In a freshwater tank the white capsules accumulate on hardscape but do not hatch, which is normal for the species. Producing juveniles requires deliberately raising the larvae in brackish or salt water with suitable larval foods and then acclimating them slowly to freshwater, an advanced process. Avoid snail predators such as loaches and crayfish.