Umm Indentification Please?

[RayneBow]

I didnt see an emergancy section for the marines..


I noticed in my tank this morning, a small little.. thing. Just saw one (may be more?) about the size of a small pea. Its clear/white, crawling on the bottom. I was getting rid of a dead peppermint shrimp that died over night and I saw it a small distance away. I was too slow to try to capture it to put it aside for a picture, it ran for cover and I cant find it again.

It's small with a clear-whitish body, fat almost roundish. it has legs and crawled. I will give more description and hopefully a picture if I see it again in clear view

The only newest things I added to my tank was 2 cleaner shrimps.. one died over night (Assuming it went into shock) the other still living.

I also temporarily had a tube anemone in for one night. I got rid of it because 50% of the web sites say they eat clowns and I didnt want to risk my clowns. That was about a week or two ago.

Can anyone identify this strange critter? Is it a friend or foe?

(my dead shrimp was in one piece, nothing ate it, nothing missing, if that helps)

 

[Navarre]

Firstly....

Are you sure the shrimp is dead? Many shrimps shed their skins when introduced toa new tank. You might just fidn that you have found the discarde3d skins of the shrimp and its still in the system somewhere. To be sure you merely have to crack open the claws and see if they are hollow. if there is meat then its dead if not then its still alive in the system.

The creatures sounds like a pod which is perfectly normal. Look up Amphipods and Copopods on google and see if these resemble the creature in your sytems. If it is tehn this is perfectly normal and a sign of a good tank.

 

[RayneBow]

It looks like an Amphipod. I'll have to look at it again to be sure.

The first few sites didnt tell me too much about it, but had good pics.

Can you tell me if its safe? and tell me what to do? Tell me more about it please? and where did it come from? did it 'create' itself there, or did it hitch a ride?

thanks

 

[Navarre]

Pods are creatures that live on and in liverock. They breed and grow in the tank and actually do a good job of eating trapped food etc so in effect they are a free cleanup crew. Another bonus of this of course is that they are a good sources of live food for the fish. Some species of fish are specialised feeders and only eat pods, mandarins are one that spring to mind. These fish take a huge amount of pods per day to nurish them so if its usually advised that enough liverock to fill 100 gallons is about right to fed 1 mandarin. Pods are nothing to worry about, fish will eat them and after a while they will balance themselves out to meet the demands of the tank etc. Some people create places within the tank that fish and other predators cannot reach so that pods have a safe place to breed and grow. (this is also known as a refugium when kept outside the tank)

 

[RayneBow]

thank you, Nav this helps alot.