Water "fleas"

[zoemon]

Just been having a look in my biorb, and have noticed little, pin head sized black "fleas" in the filter and on the top of the water.
Does anyone know what they are, how to get rid of them?

Thanks

 

[OldMan47]

I grow "water fleas" as food for my fish but they are not black, they are an orange color. Try looking up daphnia with a google search. Another similar crustacean sometimes seen in freshwater is known as cyclops. To avoid all the references to greek mythology you will need to include aquarium in a google for cyclops. One of these may be your water fleas. If you are lucky enough to have one of these in your tank, reduce feeding a bit and let the fish feast on them.

 

[Syphoniera]

Just been having a look in my biorb, and have noticed little, pin head sized black "fleas" in the filter and on the top of the water.
Does anyone know what they are, how to get rid of them?

Thanks

Could they be springtails, or something similar?
If they are mites, they may bite people, but there are many possibilities - most of them providing tasty snacks for your fish.

Can't think of proper search terms on 3 hrs. of sleep (my usual excuse) so doing general Googling:

http/badmanstropicalfish.com/articles/article33.html

http/naturalaquariums.com/bb/index.php?topic=46.0

http/www.planetinverts.com/what_is_that_...y_aquarium.html