You know when you set up a tank, you see everything you put in the tank. You may find a small bladder snail plotting to build an army, but other than that you don't expect to find anything else. However you won't believe what I found in my substrate!
Do you see it? The small white crustacean looking things? No, not the shrimp. The white round thing. I have no idea where it came from, and I have no idea how it got here but it wiggles in and out of the substrate. I observed these things searching for dead plants and left over food. Upon further research, they are actually called seed shrimp! These little guys are a type of Ostracod and flourish with high food levels (something I was trying to balance in my shrimp only tank).
They are known to be very resilient regardless of water temperature or conditions. They are generally regarded as a symbol of good water conditions or a balanced tank. However, some actually blame these seed shrimp for the death of their fish. Much of this blame can be attributed to poor water conditions. This cause the fish to die and the seed shrimp to simply take the food opportunity of a buffet. Much else is not known about these seed shrimp, but they're not a harm to your tank. In order to reduce their numbers, its recommended to reduce feeding.
Well isn't that disturbing.
Lets talk about creatures you might find in your tank that's actually a problem.
Planaria
Planaria are identified by their triangular head and are most often found in aquariums where the fish is being overfed. If there is a lot of waste in your aquarium you might see brown/black planaria. You'll commonly find them chilling on the glass if they're confident and well populated in your tank. These worms can be transferred from fish stores to your home aquarium and breed very quickly. They also can kill shrimp and even some fish.
Mosquito Larvae
These are common in the summer because of everyone's favorite pests, mosquitoes. They are identifiable by their wiggling movement through the water. Mosquitoes love to reproduce in slow moving currents. If your aquarium has any openings or very little water current you might find these larvae in your home. While they can kill baby shrimp, luckily they are a delicious fish snack. Any fish can and will remove them from the tank and are also a really good source of live food if you can control it (and like itchy arms!)
If you want to find out more about other critters possibly shuffling among your gravel, let me know on any of our social medias (@lyuda_aquatics) and I'll be sure to work on a post for it!
Until next week,
Lyuda Aquatics
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