Hydra

[PPMN]

Is it normal/ok to have hydra in a tank? It's hard to tell but I'm pretty sure that's what covers my plants and glass if I haven't wiped it off in a few days or so. It's not bacteria is it? It's almost transparent, and looks like tiny, tiny balls of fluff that "blow in the wind".

 

[ash]

It probably is- do they look like teeny anenomes? They're not really harmful, although they can as I recall send out very small irritants- electrical charges or some kind of neurotoxin, I can't remember- but not enough to bother normal fish. They're kind of cool, really. I was so excited the first time I brought them in on some plants, which is pretty common. The ones I had were a very pale green.

 

[loaches r cool]

Well, I cant say they are 'normal' tank inhabitants but they are in all my tanks except for my main FW planted tank. Not sure why not in that one unless some of the fish there eat them.

 

[jm1212]

hydra are pretty bothersome to fish, because they sting their sides and can injure small fish and kill fry. hydra are also an indicator of failing water quality. what are your water parameters? how often do you do water changes?

 

[ronw007]

Articale on Hydra

Hydra are very harmful to fry. They have some sort of toxin that once the fry come in contact with the hydra they will eventually die. From what I have read they are usually introduced from feeding fresh baby brine shrimp.

Here is an articale explaining Hydra and how to get rid of them.

http://www.yatfs.com/new_page_10.htm

Hope this helps.

 

[jonnyfry]

gourami eat hydra , so i've read .

 

[PPMN]

hmmm, then I don't think it's hydra. It's so microscopic that I can't see that it looks like anemones. Maybe it's some sort of algae.

Anyway, I think my test kit may be off, but it says nitrite 0, nitrate 0, and ammonia 0. The trite/trate is a test strip (which is why I think it may be a little off). The ammonia is a liquid test.

It grows on everything, plants, wood, glass...takes about a week to appear after removing it. You can only see it if you get super close and examine everything. They look like I said, little balls (pin head size) of clear-ish stuff.

 

[loaches r cool]

Well here is a pic of what I assumed is hydra in my tanks. Sorry I dont have a fancy high end camera with macro, its just a 3.2MP but a good one. These are really tiny like less than 1/4" tall.

 

[ash]

They are bad for fry, I forgot that part. I would get them every time I brought in new plants but they would disappear shortly after. I can't picture what you have if they are not hyrda- do they move at all? Have you added anything to your tank recently?

 

[PPMN]

Even though I'm just asking now, they've been in my tank for months. From what my naked eye can see, it looks like clear cauliflower. It moves in the water flow, but not really when I turn off the filter.