7 replies to this topic

[meagansbettas]

Hey guys,

I have just recently introduced 5 new c. schwartzii (very large) to my 2 residents in a planted display tank... anyway, almost straight away, the 5 were swimming up the sides of the glass... and that was 3 days ago... and they are still doing it...

My question is.. I have since found lots of white/orange blobs of about 2mm x 1mm (almost rectangular in shape.. not spherical). They have an orange centre... now... they don't look like typical eggs to me (never seen cory eggs! ), and when I took one out.. it was almost hard... very tree sap like.. crystaline!! lol

Are these the eggs??

But on closer inspection... they are moving!!!

Hehe

I took pics of them... and I'll try to post them as soon as I can!!

Anyone have any ideas?? These have only appeared since the new cories were added!

Thanks,

Meagan

Edited by: meagansbettas at: 1/22/03 11:45:13 am

[Tammy Brisbane]

Here's a pic of some cory eggs if this helps at all. www.eheim-uk.com/eggs.asp

[meagansbettas]

I had a look at the pic... and it doesn't look like my 'eggs'!! Mine aren't even egg like... but since they were put in the tank.. these white things with orange middles are everywhere!! All over the heater (which is turned off), and all over my CO2 line which runs over the outflow of the sponge filter!! Here is a pic of mine... it actually reminds me of Scale.. a parasite on plants.. it builds a crystaline dome and hids under it...

The thing that puzzles me is that they move... I find them, then 10mins later... it has moved a good 5cm!! FREAKY! Could I have some parasite in there now?? Not eggs??! LOL

BTW, these pics really suck... as I couldn't get enough light on them... will take one out and photograph in the sun!!

The first 2 are the pic on a java fern leaf... the blob measures 2mmx1mm




This is what it looks like stuck to the glass


See, they don't look like eggs I was expecting!!

Anyone shed some light?

Meagan

P.s. when I pulled one apart, it had an orange middle, and black dots (which I thought might be the yolk sack and the eyes)

[Tammy Brisbane]

Hi Meagan,

Nope there not eggs!! LOL

I know the things your talking about but couldn't tell ya what they are exactly, think there some sort of crustacean/snail type thing. Anyone know what these are???
I haven't seen any for a while but have noticed them show up in tanks where there is an excess amount of food being feed, in raising tanks etc. Have never known them to cause any probs to the fish. With regular water changes and getting as many out by hand or siphoning them out etc, they eventually seem to disappear.

Can anyone tell us more about this little creature?

Tammy

[meagansbettas]

LMAO, I knew it was too good to be true!! LOL

I wondered why my 'eggs' were moving!!

It is strange though... as I have never, ever seen these before, and only just added my 5 cories to an 80L tank with 2 other cories and 4 mouthbrooding bettas (5cm each).

I did notice tonight that I have thin red worm like things sticking out of the gravel... the cories get them.. if the worms don't shoot back into the gravel first. Even siphoning the gravel endlessly doesn't help!! Hmmn, might have to strip the tank bare to get rid of them.....

It has been about 3 mths since I last fed live black worms.. is it possible some got into the gravel, and have bred???

Now I am on a hunt to get rid of this crustacean!! Bummer huh!! All that excitement for nothing!! LOL

Meagan

P.s. Anyone who can shed some light on this... HELP! And where do they come from??? - I feed frozen bloodworms, and brineshrimp to the bettas... which the cories also lap up!

[mtchye]

Yeah they are some kind of snail. I was just at Terry's and he was mentioning that they are not the typical ramshorn or malaysian trumpet snail, stay small, and multiply rapidly... They do look sort of squarish, and kind of flat...

It is very difficult to prevent introduction of snails ... they can come in off anything you add that isn't sterilised prior to addition like plants, wood, ornaments etc etc

I for one have given up trying to rid them by chemical means, and now do so by hand and by controlling feeding. If you remove as many as you can see by hand the population will dwindle for a while, this plus making sure there isn't too much uneaten food will keep them in check, but never eliminate them..

The only sure way to do that is to get a loach of some sort.. Clowns will eat every snail in the tank, unless seriously overfed lol...

But then loaches dont always fit into every tank that has snails, eg if you want to breed things they are very quick egg snatchers

Visit the:
Perth Cichlid Society Forums

[Keith Deception Bay]

Hi Meagan, The thin red worm like things will be the live worms that you fed 3 months ago. They'll just keep living and breeding in there until their a bit slow and a cory gets them. I've got simple sponge filters with gravel in the base and the live worms get in the gravel and breed like mad. The smaller new ones are always alot brighter red than the bigger adults. Don't let people tell you they need to be in the fridge. They happily live and breed in my tanks which are currently on 28deg. when you put them in the fridge it just sends them into a hibernation. I keep my worms in a 20l bucket on the floor of my fish room with an airstone in it and they live there for months.
Your cories will love the live food.

Keith

[Terry]

Hi Megan
They are definately snails and the only way to get rid of them is a total cleanout or by poisoning them. When I moved a few months ago I dumped all my gravel and steralised all my plants. I set up 40 new tanks with all new equipment and now I have these snails in about 10 tanks. They can only have come in on plants or on/in my fish. I'm going to have to get used to them
As Keith said the worms have established after you fed them to your fish and your corys should eat them, you could get lucky and have a permanent colony.
Terry