I got them with a batch of worms from Waikiki Worm. I don't know their name. I managed to kill them all, but it took a really long time and I discarded all of the bedding that that bunch of worms was in. Fortunately, I hadn't yet added those worms to my main bin at the time. The owner of WW says to ignore them, they're one more worm bin creature. I kind of thought they'd use a lot of calcium, so you may want to add extra egg shells. I'll be following this thread to see if anyone else has information on them!

Susanfromhawaii> thanks. Ive had my work bin going for two months now, they only cropped up this week. Of course it got me thinking, where did the come from? The flies and mites I know are common in bins...but never seen these!!

If you're trying to break down organic matter with slow moving invertabrates, I fail to see why snails would need to be killed in a vermicomposting bin?

Are they predator snails? I see them on the top lid, maybe they are waiting to drop onto their unsuspecting worm victims! :D

Unlike BSFL which I believe have not been identified as carrying anything bad for humans, snails may. Although "ignore them, they're one more worm bin creature" might be right most of the time I am disapointed in WW owner's answer. He could of identified the variety of snail in his bin for his customers. He could of mentioned the snails in his advertisement. Especially with other varities of snails known to carry rat lungworm parasite.

Maybe harvest just the worms and put them in new bedding.

Maybe use the old bedding on non food plants especially if it is winter where you are now.

Wear gloves.

Snails from tropical areas just seem to be in a different catagory than all the other bin creatures in my mind.

If the snails are gone and the worms have worked the bedding for a while then I would be comfortable with the bin.

I was unable to identify the snails.

While snails can be a vector and are part of the lifecycle of several parasites, I doubt this is a danger here. Mainly because I doubt these snails were exposed to any of those parasites. I would bet that at some point you added some leaves or some compost that contained some snail eggs and they simply hatched out in your bin.

Having said that, were it my bin I would remove the snails and probably flush them down the toilet. I would not want them around any of my plants.

The earlier you do this the better because you want to get them before they mature and lay another generation of eggs. I'm not sure how long that takes.

I foraged in my bin and crushed any snails I found with my fingers (wearing gloves, of course!)

I've been at it for two mornings in a row, before heading to work.

Hopefully they all DIE!!!

ainadaliel, some snail eat rotten vegetation, not living vegetation. I do not know what kind you have.
It maybe that you picked up some eggs or they came with the worms.
You could do a search on the "snails with yellow pointy shells in compost".
See what comes up.

The snails will be searching
"Tales of the Unexpected"
"Death in the Morning"

From the photo, I'd say one of the Achatinidae--not too much help, I know, since the high-level ID only gets you basic information you could acquire by observation. Most of them are vegetarian (though I know Hawaii and Texas do have carnivorous Euglandias). You're right to be concerned about calcium levels, though, and if you're planning on using your vermicompost for gardening, the snails are definitely a problem. Teeny tiny little snail-eggs just waiting to be moved to a lovely new home with tender roots for snacking... Yikes!

As for how they got there, you might check with your county extension agent about local species (native or introduced). Dratted things move a lot farther than you'd think in search of a proper home, and they're not nearly so deterred by things like doors and lids as one might hope.

Good luck!

DSF

I know this post is from 9 years ago but I found the same creatures in my worm bin. Google Lens gave me "Odostomia" which are minute sea snails. I wonder how they got inside my bin.

I have the same tiny snails. I think they must have hitchhiked into my bin with the worms that I purchased from the Waikiki Worm Lady. I've been picking them out and hope to eliminate them totally in a few weeks (or months?). I've been collecting the snails in an empty tennis ball can with lid and found new eggs in it last week. This week those eggs hatched into REALLY TINY white snail specks, good thing they are not in my worm bin anymore!

Hello fellow worm farmers 🪱

I have a 6' x 2' x 2' red wiggler worm composting system since 2018 without any problems. About 1 month ago I noticed what Google lens identified as miniature alwsnails, but an overabundance of them! Like an infestation maybe.

I don't know if they are beneficial or harmful to the compost but I plan to use the compost for a vegetable garden so I thought it best to find out first.

Most snails eat decayed vegetation, only a few eat live vegetation.

They should not hurt the compost or worms, but one female snail can lay 30 to 120 eggs at one time. Some reproduce in 6 weeks from hatching. You may want to remove the tiny snail:

Diet

Snails feed at night.[9] They feed primarily on decaying organic matter.[9] Their diet also includes fungi, lichens, green foliage, worms, centipedes, insects, animal feces, carrion, and other slugs.[9] Some snails feed on other snails too.[9

https://www.snail-world.com/

I posted that I have the same cone shaped tiny white/yellow snails in my worm composting bin! I decided to pick them out and hope to be rid of them soon! The snails like the decaying leaves and are usually near the surface. In the beginning, I removed dozens every day. After two weeks, I'm seeing only 2-3 really tiny snails every couple of days. Hope to remove them before they reach breeding size. I'm ready to harvest the vermicompost and so I'm eager to get them out of my bin!

Get the snails out. Each and every snail lays 80 eggs 4 times a year and you will be spreading them when you use the compost.

hello everyone. this is Majed from Khulais, Saudi Arabia. I know this subject is here for 11 years and still no solution for it, we at Power of Worms farm get over it by hard work and use a method. it is by putting lettuce on the top of the worm bin for 2 hours and then collect them and shack them over a container, repeat this move for one month 3 times a day and you will get rid of them we collected 2 gallons of this snail for the first 2 days then the amount starts to reduce. I have mass operation worm farm. thank you all powerofworms@gmail.com