Help! Strange Mass In Tank Look!

[g_xii]

Long time lurker, first time poster here ... I need some help!

I looked in my tank last night and found some kind of growth on the underside of the acrylic top of the tank. It looks like some kind of egg mass, but I believe it's too large of a mass to come from anything that is at present living (or has ever lived)) in the tank! The size of this mass is almost 2.5" long, and about 3/4" at the widest, and hangs down towards the water about 3/4 inches. I can see round shapes in it, fairly tiny. You can see them in the photo. The color in the photo is fairly accurate - somewhere between pale human flesh color and pink. The little bit of debris you see next to the mass is not from the mass -- little eggs are NOT breaking off. This is one solid slimy mass, all one piece.

In the tank are the following:

(2) male Gold Rams (approx 2" in length)
(10) neons ( < 1")
(1) mystery snail (1.5")
(3) blue long fin danio's (1")
(1) queen arabesque pleco (sp? 2.5")
(1) corycat (3/4")
(1) arrowana (some kind of twig shaped catfish, 3.5", but only about 1/2" wide at widest point)

Tank is 29 gallon (tall "bubble front" tank)
Live plants
Whisper internal 40 gallon filter
(1) airstone
NITRITE = 0.00 ppm
NITRATE = 0.0 ppm
AMMONIA = 0.00 ppm
pH = 6.8
TEMP = 78 degrees F

That's all that is in this tank. All fish are doing fine, water quality is good, We just cleaned the underside where this egg-mass or whatever is last Sunday, so it has been placed there within the last 5 days. We are SURE it was not there on Sunday.

Any help is appreciated.

--Henry

 

[ArauraDiscus]

It's eggs alright, but I think it's snail eggs of some sort.

 

[mommyof2bettas]

Wow, that looks peculiar
I searched on Google and it looks like mystery snail eggs... which is odd because you say you only have one...
Here's a quote and a piccy from a website...

Breeding. Two mystery snails kept together will usually figure out how to breed on their own. The secret? Lower your water level three to five inches. They crawl out of the water and lay their eggs above the water line. The egg mass looks like pink froth nearly as large as your little finger. Keep them humid and they hatch in two to three weeks. The babies fall into the water and rock and roll from day one. They grow best when kept in tanks separate from the adults. Little ones crawl inside the shells of adult mysteries and irritate them. Typical kids.

I say check your tank for any other snails that may have gotten in.
Also, you might want to think about restocking your tank, it is quite overstocked, and the water stats are also high. You should have no ammonia or nitrite.

 

[g_xii]

Wow, that looks peculiar
I searched on Google and it looks like mystery snail eggs... which is odd because you say you only have one...
Here's a quote and a piccy from a website...

Breeding. Two mystery snails kept together will usually figure out how to breed on their own. The secret? Lower your water level three to five inches. They crawl out of the water and lay their eggs above the water line. The egg mass looks like pink froth nearly as large as your little finger. Keep them humid and they hatch in two to three weeks. The babies fall into the water and rock and roll from day one. They grow best when kept in tanks separate from the adults. Little ones crawl inside the shells of adult mysteries and irritate them. Typical kids.

I say check your tank for any other snails that may have gotten in.
Also, you might want to think about restocking your tank, it is quite overstocked, and the water stats are also high. You should have no ammonia or nitrite.

Wow -- thanks for all the quick responses!

Snails, from what I understand, can breed on their own without a mate. And, you are right -- after looking at the pics posted (and on 2 other message boards where I posted the same thing) everyone seems to agree: mystery snail eggs.

It is such a HUGE amount of eggs, though... There WERE two mystery snails in this tank until about a month ago, when one of them decided to commit suicide and climb out and smash on the tiles. Sad.... but we have always had lots of mystery snails in our tanks, and I've NEVER seen an egg-mass like this before. I usually see these tiny 1/4" blobs of clear snot-like substance with little white dots in it... I always thought these were the mystery snail eggs as that's all I ever saw, and after a few months, they were everywhere.

As for this tank, I posted the wrong readings -- all water levels are ZERO in this tank. I don't think it's overstocked. All the fish are very small, most of the neons are not even 3/4 inch.

 

[i love bettas]

its eggs dont worry

 

[emma12321]

apple snails have seperate sexes but the females can store sperm have have several more batches of eggs from one mating .

Emma

 

[ibbledibble]

In the tank are the following:

(2) male Gold Rams (approx 2" in length)
(10) neons ( < 1")
(1) mystery snail (1.5")
(3) blue long fin danio's (1")
(1) queen arabesque pleco (sp? 2.5")
(1) corycat (3/4")
(1) arrowana (some kind of twig shaped catfish, 3.5", but only about 1/2" wide at widest point)

Tank is 29 gallon (tall "bubble front" tank)
--Henry

Bit off topic here, but important i think
This is a photo of a young arrowana,

does your "arrowana" look anything like it?

 

[dusky]

wow,,,apples snail eggs. lucky u. Mind you if you have a planted tank it won't be once they hatch out and start nibbling

 

[kj23502]

Long time lurker, first time poster here

Congrats on your first post and I'll still you since its' your first post(even though you've been lurking for awhile)!

 

[snoopyfrench87]

i would love a couple of mystery snails - let me know if you want to get rid of some when they hatch!

thanks

Laura

i would love a couple of mystery snails - let me know if you want to get rid of some when they hatch!

thanks

Laura

 

[ICEEGRL]

Did anyone notice that this was started a year ago? Look at the date on the first post... 2007.

 

[ALEXF]

LOL yes iceegirl i picked up on that as well. but at least i now know what snail eggs look like.

 

[dusky]

Oooooooops sorry, i didn't notice date either.

 

[ALW]

Did anyone notice that this was started a year ago? Look at the date on the first post... 2007.

 

[ibbledibble]

oops i feel stoopid now! i never resurrect posts myself, but i never seem to notice that thats what has been done! Doh!