surface bugs

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blennyluv

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Nov 6, 2004
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Location
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HI
I was wondering if anyone out there can tell me, what i have on my water surface. they look like very light tan colored spiders or something. i net them out every day, well as many as i can, and viola, they are back the next day. they just float around with the current. the 55 gal tank is a little over 2 mos old, 60# live rock, 1 clown, 1 gramm1 1 lawnmower, 1 bi color blenny, and my clean up crew
i have 2 maxi jet powerheads and a skimmer on a ug filter, and a powerfilter. cc for a base and reef base. i can't seem to find anyone to help figure out what these critter things are. maybe i need a fish that will eat them ha ha.
thanks for you help :confused:
 
A picture of one would be very helpful with an ID. Catch one/several and place it/them on a white counter top. Then take a picture. It is usually easier to get a picture this way.
99% of what you find in your tank will not be harmful. It sounds like you don't have enough surface water agitation if you are able to have small creatures swimming on it. Saltwater tanks require much higher flow rates than freshwater tanks. For your tank 600-700 gph would be the minimum flow.

Regards,
Kevin
 
Welcome to Reef Frontiers!!! I hope you enjoy the site!

I agree on trying to get a picture. Are they alive when you net them? Have you noticed them anywhere else in the tank? Do they resemble spiders or do they appear more like pods/bugs?
 
hi
well, i have at least that much flow, and they arent swimming they just sorta flow with the current, they went away for awhile, but are back. i have 2 maxi jet 1200, a protein skimmer and a pwerfilter that is around 800 gallons per hour, they are really weird, and i think i would have to put them on a black back ground and they are pretty small, dont know if i can get a good pic. will try.
thanks for the response, seems a bit weird to have bugs, you would think the dang fish would like them, but htey are much too spoiled!!
 
Welcome to Reef Frontiers Blennyluv!
Some baby spiders float thru the air after they hatch.
Could be they just happen to be landing in your tank.
I recommend a bug zapper light in addition to your tank lights! LOL J/K
Pix would help in trying to figure this one out.

Maui
 
hey thanks, by the pic these could definitly be water striders. but how the heck did i get them?? the only one i have seen actually move was this morning, he sorta flew over the surface of the water really fast and in circles and stuff. when he landed i picked him up. they are so small and very hard to see. but i don't know if they have wings. pests. how would a person be rid of them. get a fish that eats from the surface ha ha :lol:
hey, angelscrx, i see you have a dragonette, is it a mandarin?? i have one, pet shop sold him to me, told me with live rock he would be fine, but he has gotten really thin. now that he is thin tho i see him pecking around at the bottom during feeding time. i also ordered a shrimp hatchery to grow some brine shrimp for him, how is yours doing???i absolutley love him, we named him tatoo for reasons unexplainable, is there a trick to getting them to survive when they shouldn't????? :eek:
thanks for everyones help!!
 
They love stagnent water, I would be inclined to look at your flow or at least surface aggitation. The Mandarine should probably go to a new home as soon as possible. Your tank is way to young for a Mandarine. Your pod population will not be high enough to support him/her. They will not survive on brine shrimp even if you could get them to eat brine. Brine are more like candy and and have no food value.

Don
 
my water circulation seems to be good, at least i think it is, when i feed the fish have to chase the food, and i pointed one of my power heads towards the surface, that seems to be the side they are on, the other side has my powerfilter and they are not over there, they seem to be hanging on the skimmer, the only surface area that has not much flow. but they are dead, have only seen one live one.
i think you are right, but noone in this one horse town has a place for my mandarin, if he looks bad the next time i take the 220 mile trip to billings or bismark, i will bring him, they said they would take him. he is really skinny, but very active. he seems to be eating off the bottom of the tank when i feed, i hope he is getting enough to hang in there till i go. have had him 16 days. how long do you suppose he has left????
 
blennyluv said:
hey, angelscrx, i see you have a dragonette, is it a mandarin?? i have one, pet shop sold him to me, told me with live rock he would be fine, but he has gotten really thin. now that he is thin tho i see him pecking around at the bottom during feeding time. i also ordered a shrimp hatchery to grow some brine shrimp for him, how is yours doing???i absolutley love him, we named him tatoo for reasons unexplainable, is there a trick to getting them to survive when they shouldn't????? :eek:
thanks for everyones help!!
Click to expand...

Mine is a Spotted Mandarin and I have had two Psychadelic Mandarins before this one. The first two didn't last me long due to lack of pods on one and a killer Coral Banded Shrimp on the other one. The only reason I have this one is because she was given to me and I had significantly increased my pod population by transfering from my refugium to the main tank. Now when I look at the tank atnight I can see them bad boys scurrying al over the tank and both the Mandarin and the Scooter have enough to eat. With your tank being so new I don't think you have enough pods to support your Mandarin. Just because its pecking at the bottom of the tank doesn't mean its eating. And if yours has gotten skinny it is a bad sign. Do the eyes look sunken in? If so it needs to go now or it won't make it. Sorry for the bad news but I have been there.
 
IMO fish will live for two weeks without food.

i didnt see where you mentioned if you are skimming the surface...with an overflow or your skimmer intake. where does your overflow draw water from.....where does your skimmer draw water from. are either overflow types? you can agitate the surface all you can...have all sorts of volume turnover...and all sorts of current in your tank....but its not really going to make a differance unless water is leaving your tank by way of some sort of surface overflow.

steve
 
for the record i dont think a tanks age has much to do with pod population. you can have a new tank with tons of pods or an old tank with little to no pods. stability is always the concern. but i dont think that stability comes from a tanks age.

steve
 
ok, my over flow comes from a power filter, my skimmer is a tube skimmer connected to a powerhead. how do you get a pod population. have had the mandarin since 11/11. thats 3 weeks. i suppose he is getting food from somewhere. whatt is an imo fish? no, his eyes are not sunken. he looks really good actually. you can see the bones on the side of his body, but same with the one the one at the local fish store. He flares up his tall dorsel when he sees himself in his reflection, cruises all over the tank, seems really healthy. maybe i got lucky. if i get a chance to get to billings i will tank him to a new home. but until then, i have todo my best with him.
to increase flow, should i get a canister filter???
 
Phungoo said:
for the record i dont think a tanks age has much to do with pod population. you can have a new tank with tons of pods or an old tank with little to no pods. stability is always the concern. but i dont think that stability comes from a tanks age.

steve
Click to expand...

Since most people seed their tanks with only a small amount of 'pods (for example, the Inland Aquatics package and/or those that survive on live rock/live sand additions), it generally takes a while for the 'pod population to expand up to the tank's capacity to support them. I agree that old tanks can have few 'pods (due to over-consumption by animals in the tank, etc.), but most "new" tanks just haven't had time for enough breeding cycles to bring the tank up to a stable 'pod population. Patience is good. Also, be sure to allow plenty of recovery time after adding a 'pod consumer before adding another (such as a sixline, some gobies, etc.).
 
Easiest way is to look at the tank after the lights go out, in a darkened room. Use a flashlight with a red lens (red cellophane over the end). You should see a lot of small critters scampering around against the glass and on the rocks. They will probably range from a bit over 1/8" (mysis shrimp - kind of like mini-shrimp) to little specs (copepods).

Of course, with a mandarin, a clown goby, and peppermint shrimp in a 55, you may not have a lot of critters available.
 
i think my mandarin may be on his last days. he looks really skinny today. caved in belly. i have noone to give him to or i would. i think only a very small population in this little town have salt water tanks and most are fairly new. not looking like i will be making a trip before he needs me to. i feel so bad about this. i am a bit angry that the pet shop talked me into it, but angrier that i didn't do my homework. live and learn i guess
 
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