Stranger in the tank HELP

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A

Arizonagrace

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Dec 3, 2007
361
0
0
Pennsylvania
I was checking fish today and found 3 strange things in my tank.

They are very tiny...almost the width of a strand of hair, brownish black and suck on gravel and the sides of the tank. As I was attempting to catch one, my molly decided to have a snack. There are 2 more that I have seen, but they are so darn tiny that I had to use a magnifying glass to see them.

I did have a pleco and catfish in there and was wondering if it is possible they could be babies hatched from eggs? I haven't seen eggs in there, but it is possible they hid them inside a decoration or behind the background plant.

Please help. I am not sure if this is a parasite that I need to treat for or if it is a baby something I need to rescue. I do have 15 baby mollies in a fry tank and worry if this is a parasite it might get to them. I have a couple of danios in the tank as well, but have never seen pleco, catfish or danio babies.
 
try and get a pic... use the lil circle in a magnifiying gladd over the cam lens and snap a pic if u can ( midnight's cheap picture trick)
 
As I was attempting to catch one, my molly decided to have a snack.
Click to expand...

I suspect the best option is to let the Mollies fix the problem :D

Chances are they are harmless worm things and the fish will clean them up as they appear.

Cheers

Ian
 
Need a better description
 
I finally caught one of the little things and the guy at the lfs said it was a bacteria and the fish would eat them, or the would be removed with the gravel cleaner. I never saw anything like it before, but as long as they are harmless, I don't mind. The mollies are taking care of them pretty quick.

I tried a pic, but all you can't really see them. I will keep trying. Thanks!
 
My bet would be danio fry. Bacteria, so far as I know, don't ever get to the size where they'd be visible under a magnifying glass, much less the naked eye. Small egg layer fry do cling to the glass when theyre very small. Turn off your tank lights and leave it completely dark for 2 hours or so, then come back and switch the light on and look for any little things darting towards the gravel. If you can catch that then I'd say it's almost 100% danio fry that have been hatched in the tank. If that's the case, and you don't want danio babies, then think of them as a good protein snack for your fish.
 
i think he's talking about the little brown strips of bacteria colonies that grow in dirty tanks. you'll notice them when youget anot of algae and they appear. they colonize and eat the algae. you notice a small area around the strip where the algae is gone.
 
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