# Odd parasite in tank. HELP?



## Kristina (21 Jan 2013)

I went to do a water change today in my ten gal. and I found tiny little swimming bugs in the water that I had taken out. I managed to get one to swim into a tiny container to examine it. It looked like a tiiiiny spider inside of a Hornwort plant tube. It wasn't attached to my live plant but I worry that it could cause arm to my plant and my other tropical fish.


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## BigTom (21 Jan 2013)

Hi Kristina. Unfortunately your image is only showing as a tiny thumbnail, we'll need to have it a lot bigger to manage any sort of ID I think.


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## Kristina (22 Jan 2013)




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## Kristina (22 Jan 2013)

Here is another photo. sorry that theyre garbage


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## Kristina (22 Jan 2013)

BigTom said:


> Hi Kristina. Unfortunately your image is only showing as a tiny thumbnail, we'll need to have it a lot bigger to manage any sort of ID I think.


Posted more photos. A friend that works in a pet store says it sounds like baby lobster?


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## nayr88 (22 Jan 2013)

Do you happen to keep a tank of Lobster?


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## LondonDragon (22 Jan 2013)

You sure its not something like this?


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## Nathaniel Whiteside (22 Jan 2013)

LondonDragon said:


> You sure its not something like this?



Dum,dum
Dum,dum
Dum dum dum dum
Dumdumdumdumdundumdumdum
Dumdumdumdumdumdumdumdumdumdumdumdum


Deeerrrrrrrrruuuummmm.


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## nayr88 (22 Jan 2013)




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## Ady34 (22 Jan 2013)

Hi Kristina,
Unfortunately as you say the photos are difficult to make out.
If it does resemble the picture posted by londondragon then you need to get rid as its a damselfly larvae and can grow large enough to eat small fish, they easily consume shrimp......they are a nuisance!
Cheerio
Ady.

Edit: had dragonfly larvae, more like a damselfly!


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## jack-rythm (22 Jan 2013)

Ady34 said:


> If it does resemble the picture posted by londondragon then you need to get rid as its a dragonfly larvae and can grow large enough to eat small fish, they easily consume shrimp......they are a nuisance!


How do these actually enter the tank? do they come along with plants and rock?


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## Ian Holdich (22 Jan 2013)

They normally fly in and lay eggs in the tank.


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## Alastair (22 Jan 2013)

Whitey89 said:


> Dum,dum
> Dum,dum
> Dum dum dum dum
> Dumdumdumdumdundumdumdum
> ...



 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## dw1305 (22 Jan 2013)

Hi all,


Kristina said:


> It looked like a tiiiiny spider inside of a Hornwort plant tube.


Caddisfly larvae?




cheers Darrel


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## Nathaniel Whiteside (22 Jan 2013)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> Caddisfly larvae?
> 
> ...



Darrel, should we just get to the point and ask you if theres anything you don't know?


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## nayr88 (22 Jan 2013)

Whitey89 said:


> Darrel, should we just get to the point and ask you if theres anything you don't know?








OK OK ill stop with the memes


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## Ady34 (22 Jan 2013)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> Caddisfly larvae?
> 
> ...


Hi Darrel,
Are these little fellas as nasty as the others? I seem to remember finding lots of these in the bottom of my ponds over the years, they make a little stick house around themselves? Do they tolerate the warmer temperatures of our tropical tanks?
Cheerio
Ady


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## dw1305 (22 Jan 2013)

Hi all,


Ady34 said:


> Are these little fellas as nasty as the others? I seem to remember finding lots of these in the bottom of my ponds over the years, they make a little stick house around themselves? Do they tolerate the warmer temperatures of our tropical tanks?


I think they are largely detrivores, so they aren't going to eat fish etc. There are thousands of species of cased Caddis, and they occur world wide, so it could be either temperate or tropical <Trichoptera>, and probably came in with the plants. I would expect that any pond or stream would have at least 2 or 3 different species, and you even get them where the water is seasonal etc.

The adults fly, and are attracted to light (they are quite moth like) so it could have come from an egg laid in the tank, but I'd be surprised if it didn't come in with the plants.

cheers Darrel


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## Kristina (23 Jan 2013)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> Caddisfly larvae?
> 
> ...


Yesssss... that's it.  How do I get rid of it?! them...all of them. Are they dangerous? Mine seem to hold onto that piece of debris as they swim. so they look like the plants fallen "leaves"


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## callmephathead (24 Jan 2013)

Hitchhikers In Freshwater Tanks & Ponds - Tropical Discussion - Tropical Fish Forums


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## Kristina (24 Jan 2013)

callmephathead said:


> Hitchhikers In Freshwater Tanks & Ponds - Tropical Discussion - Tropical Fish Forums


So im supposed to just let these things run my tank? There are so many of them. And if they hatched from my plant, doesnt that mean they'll keep coming back? Can i just add a pinch of salt to get rid of them or will that not kil them? I want them gone.


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## callmephathead (24 Jan 2013)

Kristina said:


> So im supposed to just let these things run my tank? There are so many of them. And if they hatched from my plant, doesnt that mean they'll keep coming back? Can i just add a pinch of salt to get rid of them or will that not kil them? I want them gone.


Sorry I don't have a better answer...
Maybe you could syphon out some water from your tank, pass it throug a fine mesh or those media bag and put the water back in the tank...it't time consuming but it will eliminate most larvaes if you do it several times...


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## Kristina (24 Jan 2013)

callmephathead said:


> Sorry I don't have a better answer...
> Maybe you could syphon out some water from your tank, pass it throug a fine mesh or those media bag and put the water back in the tank...it't time consuming but it will eliminate most larvaes if you do it several times...


Haha dont be sorry! Im a lot nore educated than i was a few days ago! I just dont know how to deal with this haha.  its my first tank and i already have had ick and now this!   i have horrible luck. Ill vacuume the rocks and add the water back. After cleaning them. Ill stir up the rocks. Once i get a chance ill try adding some aquarium salt. Just to kill any unwanted stuff. Maybe get a loach


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## dw1305 (25 Jan 2013)

Hi all,


callmephathead said:


> Hitchhikers In Freshwater Tanks & Ponds - Tropical Discussion - Tropical Fish Forums


 Good link.


Kristina said:


> Once i get a chance ill try adding some aquarium salt. Just to kill any unwanted stuff. Maybe get a loach





Kristina said:


> So im supposed to just let these things run my tank? There are so many of them. And if they hatched from my plant, doesnt that mean they'll keep coming back? Can i just add a pinch of salt to get rid of them or will that not kil them? I want them gone


 
Kristina don't add salt, it doesn't serve any useful purpose in the aquarium and is actively damaging to your plants.

Same with adding fish, find out a bit about them before you buy them. So for Loaches you need to ask "is it happy on its own?", "how big will it grow?", "does it like to dig?", "is it aggressive to other fish?". Go to a source that offers good advice, in this case there is a resource "Loaches on-line" <_Loaches Online - Community Edition — Loaches Online_>.

Whether you want to run a very clean tank is up to you, but you need to remember that in most cases what you use to kill unwanted guests is much more dangerous than the guests themselves.

I'd suggest just syphoning out any thing you see if you don't like them. Personally I like as much life as possible, and I actively add _Asellus_, Ostracods  etc. but I understand not every-one is going to want to do this.

cheers Darrel


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## Kristina (25 Jan 2013)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> Good link.
> 
> 
> ...


Ive just been told that a pinch of salt can kill unwanted pests and can benifit my fish from a few different pet stores and fish shops. Im very uncomfortable having these pests in my tank and am very unsure how to perm. Get rid of them. I cannot see them in my tank, i only notice them in my tank when i do a water change. I see them in the bucket of water i take out. I dont know anymore what to do haha.. I keep being told a bunch of things. Some people say leave them in, but honestly thats not an option for me. So pretty much what youre saying is stir up the rocks and do a sweep up of the floating stuff and that'll eventually take them out?


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## dw1305 (25 Jan 2013)

Hi all,


Kristina said:


> Ive just been told that a pinch of salt can kill unwanted pests and can benifit my fish from a few different pet stores and fish shops


*Don't listen to them*.
Have a look here: "Water Chemistry: Osmoregulation, Ionic Imbalance & pH" in "The New England Cichlid" A NEW ENGLAND CICHLID ASSOCIATION PUBLICATION April 1, 2011.
<http://www.tbas1.com/Exchange/The%20New%20England%2011.pdf>


Kristina said:


> I keep being told a bunch of things


That is the problem, you need reliable sources to go to in my opinion this is one of them. Another source that I rate highly is the "Skeptical Aquarist" <Salt | The Skeptical Aquarist> & <Invertebrates | The Skeptical Aquarist>


Kristina said:


> So pretty much what youre saying is stir up the rocks and do a sweep up of the floating stuff and that'll eventually take them out?


Yes.

cheers Darrel


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## Kristina (25 Jan 2013)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> *Don't listen to them*.
> Have a look here: "Water Chemistry: Osmoregulation, Ionic Imbalance & pH" in "The New England Cichlid" A NEW ENGLAND CICHLID ASSOCIATION PUBLICATION April 1, 2011.
> ...


Thank you so much. I do appreciate it! I mean if youre adding these things.. I can always ship them over to you! Haha.  i'll take a good look at the provided information and print off a lot of it so i can always have a copy on hand


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