Conservatory Water pond
of Central park in NYC is
my favorite place to pick up pond snails.
Pond snails crawl on the walls of this
manmade pond during the warm season.
This pond is home to ducks, fish, and
many aquatic critters that
I've been showing in my videos.
Check them out!
Now, if you look down on the wall
you may notice pond snails - here is one.
Let's take a closer look at it.
It is an adult snail.
Pond snails can grow
a bit larger than that in the pond.
In aquariums, they grow no bigger than that.
Let's fill up an empty plastic bottle
with water from the pond.
Put the snail in the bottle.
One pond snail is all it takes to start
a population of pond snails in an aquarium.
I am going to pick a couple more snails.
It's always better to start with younger,
smaller snails if you have them to choose from.
Put the snails in the bottle and close it.
Pond snails breathe atmospheric air.
That is why they come
to the water’s surface so often.
And for that reason, I poke a hole
in the bottle cap to let air in.
Now I am ready to take the snails
to their new home in my aquariums.
Also, while looking for pond snails in this pond,
you may find (much larger)
trapdoor mystery snails.
Here is one.
This is an adult trapdoor snail.
I have seen (and shown in my videos)
even larger trapdoor snails than this one.
They need larger aquariums than I have.
So, back in the pond it goes.
Biking around Central Park, I come to
The Pool pond on West 102nd.
Finding pond snails in this pond is a bit
trickier as it is in all natural ponds and rivers.
Look for pond snails on plants in water!
Let's take a look at this one...
Aha! Found one from the first attempt.
Now, look again at the plant
and you may find snail eggs.
Yes! Here I see two jelly pouches.
There could be eggs of some insects
or critters on the plant as well.
I think that starting your ponds snails
populations from snail eggs is
the safest and best way.
Let's cut the part of the leaf with the eggs -
that is the only part I want to take home.
Put it in the bottle with other snails.
Now, let's look again at the same plant.
Yep, there are some more eggs
on the stem of the plant.
Cut the part of the stem with eggs on it.
This part goes into the bottle.
And the rest of the plant goes back in the pond.
I got more than enough
to start a population of snails :)
Also at this pond, we can pick up
fresh duckweed to grow in aquariums,
to make fish food, or both ;)
I scoop a bit and put it all in the same bottle.
Also, you can put duckweed
in a ziplock bag to carry it home just fine.
Another way to find pond snails is to look
for any subtle movements in the water.
Here I spot one snail.
One has to be patient and know
what to look for to find snails in this way.
Picking snails off of walls or
with plants are easier ways.
Okay, I am letting this snail go...
but look what I found here!
It is a baby snapping turtle.
Ah...baby baby, it's been a long time since
I've seen baby turtles in Central park.
Let's see if you can identify
the gender of this baby :)
It is a really nice surprise for me
to find this baby turtle here in September.
Back to the pond the baby turtle goes.
Nice and easy.
It's amazing how much life can be found
in one spot in the middle of big New York city.
Beautiful life in a beautiful city.
So, that is how you can find pond snails in
almost every freshwater pond, lake, and river.
Quarantine the wild caught samples in
separate nurseries before moving them
into main aquariums.
Check my previous videos
for more details about it.