What's Gotten In My Tank?

[Saedcantas]

move quite quickly...

This has to be the dead giveaway, hydra certainly dont move fast and planaria are hardly sprinters!

They most likely arrived on some plants or in water drops on plants. It may be that even if you havent added any plants in a while it has taken until now for their population to become sufficient for you to notice them

Nothing to worry about either way. I find them another nice naturalistic addition

 

[hollyp0p]

move quite quickly...

This has to be the dead giveaway, hydra certainly dont move fast and planaria are hardly sprinters!

They most likely arrived on some plants or in water drops on plants. It may be that even if you havent added any plants in a while it has taken until now for their population to become sufficient for you to notice them

Nothing to worry about either way. I find them another nice naturalistic addition

ok that's cool, I'm so glad they're nothing to worry about, your probably right about the population thing, or maybe they have only recently been big enough, is that the biggest they'll get??

 

[Colin_T]

They aren't ostracods. Ostracods are 3-4mm in diameter and are round. They usually sit in the substrate and have no way of hanging on the glass. If they have to move they clap their little shells together like a scallop and flit thru the water before sinking to the bottom again.
Copepods (cyclops) usually move in quick jerky movements.
Planaria crawl along slowly

 

[hollyp0p]

They aren't ostracods. Ostracods are 3-4mm in diameter and are round. They usually sit in the substrate and have no way of hanging on the glass. If they have to move they clap their little shells together like a scallop and flit thru the water before sinking to the bottom again.
Copepods (cyclops) usually move in quick jerky movements.
Planaria crawl along slowly

they're not jerky they're smooth pretty fast movers.....like constant

 

[Colin_T]

It sounds a lot like planaria
There isn't much else out there that is small white and sits on the glass. Exxcept perhaps the little white worms that are quite often found in large cichlid tanks where there is lots of rotting meat food on the bottom. But your tank is a bit too clean for them.

 

[hollyp0p]

It sounds a lot like planaria
There isn't much else out there that is small white and sits on the glass. Exxcept perhaps the little white worms that are quite often found in large cichlid tanks where there is lots of rotting meat food on the bottom. But your tank is a bit too clean for them.

was i wrong in thinking planaria was a worm?
I've done yet another water change now anyway, will see what happens, will interpets no. 12 get rid of them?

 

[hollyp0p]

It sounds a lot like planaria
There isn't much else out there that is small white and sits on the glass. Exxcept perhaps the little white worms that are quite often found in large cichlid tanks where there is lots of rotting meat food on the bottom. But your tank is a bit too clean for them.

was i wrong in thinking planaria was a worm?
I've done yet another water change now anyway, will see what happens, will interpets no. 12 get rid of them?

on second look some do move jerky...like forwards jerk...forwards....some are smooth, they are fast.
If it's cyclops how big do they get?

 

[Colin_T]

if they are cyclops they are full grown

planaria infestations usually die back after a few weeks. You can use copper based medications to kill them but be careful. Some fish are sensitive to copper as are shrimp and snails.
Leave it for a week or two and see how things go. They will only be a problem if you are trying to breed fish. And chances are their numbers will decline soon anyway.

 

[hollyp0p]

if they are cyclops they are full grown

planaria infestations usually die back after a few weeks. You can use copper based medications to kill them but be careful. Some fish are sensitive to copper as are shrimp and snails.
Leave it for a week or two and see how things go. They will only be a problem if you are trying to breed fish. And chances are their numbers will decline soon anyway.

ahh ok not trying to breed anything and the tank's kept very clean atm, hopefully they won't be a problem! Cheers Colin!