Algae on my snail?

[elizabeth]

I know this really doesn't have anything to do with newts, but for a while my little snail has had whispy green...stuff growing from the back end of its shell. Its a small, spiral cone-shelled snail that came in one of my "Aqua Babies" frog kit a long time ago. Recently its back shell has been overtaken with whispy, feathery green stuff. Is it algae? Because if it is, I'd like to remove it. It breaks off a lot and pollutes my tank. Though I'd like to know what it is so if I do remove it, I dont hurt my snail.

 

[paris]

i have had huge strings of green algae off some of my snails-it flowed behind them in the water like green flames-its not harmful-remember the shell is as dead as your nails, removing it may be tricky and i'd advise to leave it alone.

 

[ken]

My snails have tonnes of algae on them. I occasionally see one of my otos eating off of him. *chuckle* One of them also has a strange little fan like critter growing on his back, looks kind of like the head of a tubiflex worm or something. *shrug*