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Re: shrimp/snail experiements, tweezers, and hydra
Hi, All!
Sorry I didn't respond sooner... I do use tweezers, and I think my problem
was that I wasn't pushing the stem down deep enough. I use a short, but
sharp one I bought for a few bucks from a hardware store last year, and the
extremely pointy tip always ends up piercing the point of contact on the
stem. If I push too hard into the substrate, the tweezers just rip through
and down the grain of the stem. Then begins the cursing. I probably just
need a different type. The fact that the stems were insecurely anchored
made it so that minor disturbances, as caused by MTS's, would be enough to
loosen their foothold. Anyhow, I got rid of my Cardamine lyrata a long time
ago. The roots growing out from every dang leaf node was really pretty
annoying. Somebody requested the plant, and I was happy to part with all of
it. For trimming, I use a cheap pair of cuticle scissors; a bit rusty now,
but still very sharp. I don't remember the last time I had a tetanus shot,
either. But it's not like I use them for their intended purpose... ;)
Now, an update on the hydra problem I wrote about earlier this month...
I've been freaking out for the past couple of weeks because their
population was steadily growing. I could even see new ones "budding" out of
old ones. I put a larger guppy in the tank, even some dwarf rasboras (an
impulse purchase), and nobody did more than "nip" at the hydra, out of what
seemed like curiosity than predation. They'd asterisk up quickly enough
that even the tentacles were left unharmed. I was so disgusted, I went
ahead and purchased Bausman's fish tonic. Today, I followed the recommended
dosage for eradication of hydra but it seems that it was only maybe 80%
effective. The ones that are still on the glass appear either unharmed or
slightly damaged... On the bright side, my snails have not been visibly
affected. The directions say to wait six days before adding more. I have a
feeling that the ones that "let go" and fell into the gravel are going to
bounce right back in a matter of days, with more determination than ever to
drive me to insanity. If this tonic indeed fails to work, I have one last
trick up my sleeve... I'm going to try and get my hands on some Panacur
(fenbendazole) and nuke these creepy nasties once and for all. It's
squeamish human against yucky coelenterate... Make no mistake about it. *I*
WILL win... I simply may have to come to terms with unintended casualties.
I don't know how Panacur would affect my snails, but to paraphrase Spock
(from Star Trek), "The needs of the aquarist outweigh the needs of the
snails."
'Til next time...
Sincerely,
Naomi