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Re: [APD] strange "things"



Looks like hydra to me. However if it is rather small in in the number of
thousands, I'd guess it could be protozoans like Epistylis, Vorticella and
the like. If you have a microscope or a strong maginfying glass, you might
see the protozoans are actually like small bulbs on contractile stalks. They
contract from time to time like minitature springs. You can watch a few
movies here:

Epistylis:
http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/moviegallery/pondscum/protozoa/epistylis/index.html
Vorticella:
http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/moviegallery/pondscum/protozoa/vorticella/index.html

I know because I had an outbreak myself. Good thing I have a microscope :)

Generally they are not harmful, but may attach to fish and cause skin
irritation and secondary infection. Just cut down on organic matter and they
should subside. Or you can use medications such as Clout which can help
reduce the population of the protozoan.

However if it's hydra, then it's a bigger problem. Hydras are predators and
may (and will) catch fish fry and even small fish.

HTH,

Alex

> I have noticed very strange creatures in my aquariums... I am not sure
where
> they could have originated from, but they probably moved from aquarium to
> aquarium because I moved some plants around. They look like tiny white
> anemones, they are about 3-4mm tall and appear to have a stem and 5
> hairlike "tentacles". When I first noticed them there were hundreds of
tiny
> ones on the glass. Soon I noticed big ones attached to plants etc. Anyone
have
> an idea of what these could be? Are they harmful to anything (I can't
imagine
> them being good)? How can I get rid of them? Thanks in advance.
>

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