Origin
Native to East Africa and the Indo-Pacific region, including freshwater rivers and streams in Egypt, India, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Melanoides tuberculata has since spread across tropical and subtropical regions worldwide and is now naturalized—and often invasive—in parts of the Americas, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.

Visual & Functional Appeal
The shell is long and conical, often tan, light brown, or mottled with subtle ridging or speckling. These snails spend most of their time buried in substrate, surfacing at night to forage. Though not ornamental, their behavior provides ecological depth to natural tanks and supports healthy plant root zones.

Purpose
Trumpet snails help aerate substrate by constantly burrowing, which prevents anaerobic gas buildup and promotes nutrient flow to plant roots. They also scavenge for uneaten food and decaying material, helping to stabilize water chemistry and reduce ammonia spikes.

Importance
Indispensable in planted and shrimp tanks, especially where long-term biological stability is the goal. They can help indicate water quality (e.g., climbing tank walls en masse when oxygen is low). While beneficial, their fast reproductive rate demands responsible management.

Included Resources
No special gear needed. Best kept in planted, lightly to moderately stocked tanks with fine substrate. Avoid copper-based medications. They can survive in surprisingly poor conditions but thrive in stable, oxygen-rich environments with mild flow and available food.

Best Use Cases
Perfect for natural aquascapes, shrimp colonies, breeding setups, and tanks with active root systems. Not ideal for display-only or snail-free designs unless population control measures are in place.

Conservation Context
Melanoides tuberculata is classified as invasive in many regions and is known to compete with native gastropods and host parasites in wild ecosystems. Never release into waterways. Ethically managed populations are safe and beneficial in aquaria but must be kept contained.

Compatible Species
Ideal with peaceful community fish (e.g., tetras, rasboras, Corydoras), dwarf shrimp, snails like Nerites (if overpopulation is managed), and plants. Avoid pufferfish, Assassin snails (Anentome helena), and large snail-eaters like loaches or cichlids.

Region (A)
• Latitude: 3.2° N
• Longitude: 101.7° E
→ Klang Valley, Malaysia (common native range)

Region (B)
• Latitude: -6.1° S
• Longitude: 106.8° E
→ West Java, Indonesia (established tropical range)