Have finally mangaged to remove the duck weed blanket that has plagued the pond for the last 3 years. Have developed a system for skimming it off the surface. The duckweed if allowed to take hold kills all plant life below the surface. Now the little crocodiles (newts) can be seen swimming along the surface. Some newts swim around in couples.
Idly searching ebay for aquatic plants I came across a chap selling snails. They were only a couple of pounds so I ordered 3. They arrived in the post today intact.
The seller says they are a bit moody when you take them out the parcel they take half an hour or so to come around.
They are Black Japanese Trapdoor Pond Snails.
They are not hermaphrodites, that means I think that they don't have sex with themselves.
Their young are delivered live. Garden snails in this country lay white eggs.
You can sex the snails by looking at their antennae. Females have longer ones.
This snail is a great asset in keeping algae under control as they groom your plants, planting pots and watergarden walls. They also cruise the pond bottom and consume decaying matter such as leaves and fish food. These are live bearing snails. They only breed a couple of times a year so don't expect them to multiply fast like regular egg laying snails. Full grown snails are around 3" long.
It will be best if they cruise the bottom or the blackbird will have them.
http://www.pondkoi.com/trapdoor_snails.htm
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