What Are These Bugs In My Aquarium?! Critters You May Just Find In Your Tank.... 

Waverwreck - much appreciate the corrections! You certainly know this much more in depth than I do - I'll have to pin this so the folks can see it. Well done. You are the bug whisperer :) Really appreciate the clarifications! Glad you checked out the video!

Glad i could be of assistance. As a child, i used to panic when i`d see some new critters in my tanks... and was faced with a lack of "peer knowledge" so i had to do a lot of research. Hope this helps someone sleep better :P and not worry :)

0:08 its gammaurus and good aquarium fish food and it eats waste and dead plants

@waverwreck I am currently struggling with a sudden detritus infestation and I am freaking way too much. I only have 2 bettas in a tank with a separator and an algae eater in there. How do you get rid of those 💔

@@sjarvis4839 medicine called "no planeria" or your own custom fog dewormer only if it's active ingredient is fenbendazol...chech RU-vid on how to get concentration right.

Lol - i freaked out too on the first time Oscar. But not to worry. All those critters are pretty harmless

Same I saw little weird round bugs in my aquarium

Fangs & Forests - my pleasure! Glad it was helpful and enjoy the planted betta tank!! 👍

Totally get it. I used to freak out as well. Most of them, though, besides hydra, are totally harmless 👍

Thanks for the kind words Heather! Glad the video was helpful. And wow, I can’t believe this video is already 3 years old! I remember making this one like it was just the other day....time flies. 😊. All still relevant though. Thank you for subscribing and I hope other videos are helpful to you. Thanks for watching!

The worms actually can ben harmfull when there are to much.

Yep, they are a fantastic snack for the shrimp, for sure!!

@@dmichaelsfishden YUM!!!!!

Still have it or no??

jwhalstrom - my pleasure! Glad it gave you some piece of mind! Yep, a lot of those little critters are totally harmless - good snacks, in fact, for your fish 😀 Thanks for checking out the video!

My pleasure, Kendra! Glad it was helpful! Yes, most of these little critters are harmless copepods that can sometimes be more of a snack for your fish than a threat ;)

My pleasure Juliana!

Wanda - yep, nothing to worry about! Except if it is a Hydra - but they are very distinct and you would know. All other critters are totally harmless so you are safe and sound! And side note: If you have been raising fish for over 15 years I highly doubt you would be doing anything wrong! :) Thanks for checking out the video!

@@dmichaelsfishden thanks for the validation. This is a peaceful hobby for me. I enjoy doing it.👍😃

Wanda - likewise for me :) Very peaceful and always helps relax me on a stressful day :)

My pleasure, Collin! And don't worry - I freaked out the first time I saw these as well, which is why I ended up doing a ton of research on it. When I first saw them I had no idea what they were either...

My pleasure Marie Anne! Glad it was helpful and thanks for watching! Yeah, a lot of us get surprised when we see these little critters. I think it all shocks us a little. Do you have a lot of detritus worms right now? I don't know of any medication that is easily available that might work. They should begin to go away with water changes - they are usually the result of overfeeding, etc...in a tank. I've never personally had them in my tank, but if the infestation is bad, here is what I would do: I'd take the betta out and put him in a bucket with an air stone and water conditioner (if you are using tap water. I'd save the biomedia in the filter, filter sponges, etc...in another bucket, again with fresh water with conditioner in it....take out any decor, plants, etc...put those in the same bucket....then I would really try to clean the tank out if you can. If the infestation is really bad, you may consider throwing out the old substrate and replacing it with new substrate. Then I'd put everything back. For the first week or so I would add beneficial bacteria to the tank every other day to rebuild your beneficial bacterial colony a little. I have read that with water changes the worms eventually will go away, but unfortunately I don't have any personal experience myself. Hope that helps a little. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful. I've had just about every little critter except detritus worms and hydra.

dmichaels fish den thank you for the detailed reply ♥️ In my case I had detritus, and then the next day I saw copepods and 3 hydras! So what I did was cry, kick stuff, pull my hair etc... but when I calmed down, I read a lot of entries online and watched a lot of RU-vid videos like yours, and I realized it was normal and part of thriving ecosystem. The detritus was probably because 1. that day when I did the water change I accidentally poured my water in a little more violently than usual so it disturbed the subtrate where they were hiding, and 2. I had a poor oxygen/filtration system because I kinda diy-ed mine to make a softer current flow for the betta fish. The detritus came up to the surface and stayed because of poor oxygen (also because I wasn’t gravel vacuuming well in my case) So the next morning I went out and bought a sponge filter with an airpump attached to valves to control the air bubbles etc... I cleaned everything as you suggested, even though my fish supplier told me to wait it out with water change, and that the bettas and otocinclus would eat the pests (they did, when I came back home, the copepods were gone, and I saw one of my bettas biting off a hydra - and it grew back creepily 😭😭) I scrubbed everything and disinfected some of my equipments and the tank. I am now with a bare bottom tank just because my tank is in my bedroom and the thought of worms in my room makes me cringe 😂😂 I saved my plants inside glass jars that I placed in the tank as well. Everything looks great now. I have another micro tank in our living room that has detritus, but they are almost never visible, they stay only inside the subtrate. In that tank, I have ramshorn snails, shrimps and otocinclus as my cleaning crew and a couple of ember tetras, so I guess they will never dare to go up, as I am sure they will be eaten. So that was my experience. I hope it was kinda interesting or useful as well. Thanks!!!

I have 2 solutions for anti-detritus worms. (1.) Aquarium salt. It killed my detritus worms and safe for the fish. Heck, if they are sick they get better. (2.) Put in guppies. My guppies love to chow down on detritus worms. And bettas love to hunt for guppy fry. Guppies produce tons of fry so you don't have to worry about your betta getting hungry again.

@@s-moi3413 hi! this comment was 2 years old but you are so right. All I did was add guppies and never worried about disgusting worms ever again, my guppy fry even grew really fast, thank you for your comment

Wallytuber - My pleasure....and always a great preventative method using General Cure. But most of these little critters you find in the tank are copepods and harmless to your fish. Thanks for watching!

Kathy - if that doesn't work, one of the FB groups I'm in strongly recommends this product for killing hydra:www.amazon.com/Genchem-Planaria-Shrimp-Killer-Planted/dp/B07M683JK4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=no+planaria&qid=1595183212&sr=8-1 Hope that helps!

I Burn Stuff - these could be small copepods, and most likely are. Is it an indoor or outdoor tank? Most of these little critters are pretty harmless, though if you've been feeding more lately, they can show up....I'm still not sure exactly how they do....they do hitchhike into tanks from time to time, as well as their eggs...some of the copepod species' eggs can lay dormant for a long time and aren't always visible. They may have hatched if there is more of an abundance of food in the tank. They can "bloom" sometimes with more eggs hatching. They may be a nice little snack for your turtle, and if you have any fish in the tank, fish should snack on them as well. The only little critter I know of that poses a danger is the Hydra, and this guy can be seen well with the eye. The Hydra definitely doesn't look like a small white flea, so nothing to worry about there. Their numbers usually drop, and your turtle may very well snack on them - if there are just way too many and it is an infestation, you may need to remove some manually, but in time, the population should reduce. Hope that helps a little!

Thanks, Anthony! I thought this was a topic that would be helpful to beginners. Years ago I freaked out when I saw these guys in my tank, assuming I was doing something wrong.....(I was, but the critters weren't one of them 😉). As always, appreciate the kind words!

Congrats!! Either you have a free clean up crew or some fish snacks :) They are definitely not harmful to the fish, so nothing to worry about!

Should I get worried about detritus worms? The tank is actually still cycling and I can see this worms and seed shrimp already...

JTS - detritus worms, to my knowledge are not harmful to fish - they are a normal part of the ecosystem. They are great "composters" in your tank, however they can be a sign of how your tank maintenance is....if the population absolutely explodes, that is due to higher amounts of organic waste. But if you don't have a massive outbreak of them, nothing to worry about 😀

Thanks v!! Appreciate the kind words and that's really nice of you to say. Anyone that takes valuable time out of their day to message me certainly deserves a response! Thanks for subbing. Glad to have you on board! 😀

@@dmichaelsfishden Looking forward to your next eucational video.

So glad it was helpful and thank you for subbing! Great to have you on board! 😀

Thanks for the kind words, Arun and my pleasure! Glad it was helpful!

Amber - my pleasure and glad the video was helpful!!! It's natural to get freaked out a little when we have these weird little creatures show up in our tanks...😮 But most of the time, they are harmless little guys (except that Hydra 😉) Thanks for checking out the video!

Kingnocho - glad it was helpful! Yes, definitely get rid of that Hydra...it's one of the few critters that actually can cause some harm in the tank. Appreciate you checking out the video!

@@dmichaelsfishden Alongside planarian worms. They are predators of shrimplets.

My pleasure, Alexander! Glad it was helpful! Yes, a lot of people pitched in and provided some great follow up comments for accuracy on this one.

Thanks for the kind words, Omar! Proud to have you aboard and glad you enjoyed the video!

Zuzu - they are so many of these little guys. The subscribers did a great job clarifying some things on the video. If you read the comments, that should hep you! 👍

Ava -are they little white worms? (smaller than Planaria?) What do they look like?

@@dmichaelsfishden I have those. What do I do? They came off my new snail

Wow!!! 20 tanks! AND counting?? My admiration to you. I don't know if I could handle that many tanks...Lol - I only have 4 running and that's about all I can handle at the moment! Yes, you definitely see a lot of strange things the longer you are in the hobby...for sure. I'm only 9 years in, so you have seen much more than I have. I certainly have never seen Hydra kill shrimp!

ajr13 - I wouldn't make a habit of it 😉 But naw, you should be fine....these are just little crustaceans so one or two, accidentally, shouldn't hurt - kind of like swallowing a bug. Though you could get a Siphon with a pump on it 👍 That way, you won't have to use your mouth to Siphon. There is also a technique for getting the Siphon going that doesn't have a pump. I might have to post a video on it....but I wouldn't worry to much if you accidentally swallow one of these little guys...😀Some of them are a sign of good water parameters and conditions

My pleasure, Eduardo!

Stone Wallace appreciate the kind words! This was a fun one to do and really glad it was helpful!

Shelby - there are NO stupid questions in this hobby :) Most of these little critters are small harmless copepods/mosquito larvae, etc...so they are really pretty harmless. They aren't very pretty and won't win any Miss Universe contests, but they won't cause any harm. The only critter I know of that can cause harm to fish is the hydra, but I've never seen one in a tank yet. What I'm not absolutely sure about is whether they can bite or spread any disease, but I think the chances of that are pretty slim. They are so small I'm not even sure they could penetrate human skin. So most of the normal ever day small critters you might encounter won't cause any threat. Hope that helps!

@@dmichaelsfishden thanks so much for this detailed answer! This is helpful.

The adult mosquito is obviously very harmful if it gets on your skin. The other creatures can't even survive on your skin if they dry out. They will die in the bloodstream but should by no means be allowed into an open wound. They may carry internal parasites, such as worms, so they should never be ingested.

My pleasure!!

Glad it was helpful and my pleasure!

Prakash - they aren't on a fish right? They are in groups by themselves? I'm not sure what those might be - may be some time of copepod, which is likely. They usually spring up either because they hitchhike in on a plant, rock, etc...from the fish store, or can multiply as a result of too much feeding and organics in the water. I would try to cut back on the feeding, which will cause their numbers to decline. What kind of fish do you have? The fish may also eat them as snacks, if they are copepods. If that doesn't work, you can always use Fritz Mardel Coppersafe, which should kill them BUT - if you have shrimp or snails you will need to take them out as Coppersafe is not safe for them. Coppersafe is a chelated copper solution that stays active in the tank for about a month (can be removed with activated carbon as well). ALSO - coppersafe isn't perfectly safe for scaleless fish either (clown loaches, etc..). So I would first try to cut back on the feeding. If that doesn't work, i would try Coppersafe, which should get them Hope that helps a little!

Rapy PW - is it all around it's tail? Does it look like cotton? Little small cotton lines? Or small white dots? Is it all over his whole body or just the tail? Tell me a little more so I can help 😀 Can you describe it a little more?

Looks like the mystery life form got rtbu GT as well. 1 like = 1 prayer.

I have the same problem and I've been trying to figure it out too! Its white only on top fin and I thought it to be fin rot so I changed water and all that good stuff but It wont go away

nothing means everything Sounds like a parasite man use general cure

nothing means everything If it’s a fungus then use aquarium salt

I freaked out when I saw all these critters. Nothing to worry about. 😀

@@dmichaelsfishden yes, I was like, "what the--where did those come from?!" But as long as they're not parasites, I'm fine with them. And so is my betta.

CheshireKat yep! You are doing great!

Glad it was helpful King! Thanks for the kind words!

Harmless critters and may be nice snacks for your fish! :)

Interesting! Have to imagine the CO2 snuffed them out a bit. All my tanks are low tech, but I see CO2 in my future. Really interesting that they vanished after the pressurized CO2.....I wonder if that is something that is common? CO2 is one thing I'm not well versed in...:)

Seag ull - Are you able to email any pictures: dmichaelsfishden@gmail.com. Really interesting that both tanks have this breakout. Are you absolutely infested with them? I'm not sure regarding the oval shape. My first thought was baby snails....Maybe there was a net or something you might have used that had some hitchhikers on it? Here is the good news...most of these little creatures we find in our tanks are tiny crustaceans. Harmless to our fish (except Hydra) but obviously it's not cool when you become infested. Usually, your fish like to eat them as a snack, but, you'd have to have a ton of fish to handle an infestation...somehow, these little critters must have hitchhiked in....It's hard to diagnose without seeing pictures, but a lot of people in the hobby have recommended Benibachi Planaria Zero to get rid of these infestations. I'll leave a link, and I hope it's helpful. I've never personally used it, so that is my disclaimer, however, I know several in the hobby that swear by it: www.amazon.com/dp/B00E877CPW/?tag=8121-20 I've been told it's safe for shrimp, snails, plants, and fish - it just knocks out the little critters. Hopefully that helps?

Matthew - they likely aren't harmful. The only critter I know that is harmful is the hydra. They could get invasive, though, which would be a worst case. I'm not sure what they might be without seeing them, but you can try removing them with a fine net, if they are just in the water column. Detrius worms and other critters can breed more and become invasive if there is a lot of left over uneaten food, detrius, or other organics breaking down in the tank. I'm not a huge fan of introducing chemicals/medication to kill them off, as that could stress your betta. I would do some extra water changes - maybe 2 a week, 20%, and keep that routine going for awhile. Make sure there isn't any left over food around the substrate - sometimes when we increase our husbandry, their populations thin out. If that doesn't work, you could try Prazi Pro from Hikari (safest way to go) or General Cure from API. The Praziquantel in both may get the little critters, but of the two, my first try would be Prazi Pro. Hope that helps a little!

dmichaels fish den Thanks for the reply, very useful. I’ve been looking for information about it and didn’t found, and for a moment I was worried for my betta. I will try my best to get rid of them, without hurting my betta ofc.

Nat - they certainly can, yes. However, remember, if these are small planaria, most of your fish will eat them as a snack. Unless you have a massive outbreak of them....in that case there is an underlying problem with water quality and too much mulm and decomposing organics in the substrate (usually due to overfeeding, etc...). If your water quality is good (wait until 0 ammonia 😀) you should be ok. See how your fish react...usually they take care of the little critters....nice move removing the fish - let's wait until the ammonia is gone. You can try to net out as many of those critters as you can as well. But the only really dangers one is the Hydra...Hope that was helpful and thanks for checking out the video! ✌️

Thank you so much for your reply! I did a small water change before putting my fish back into the planted tank, and almost all of the critters are gone, they must've been a real tasty snack! I'm guessing the outbreak came from the soil and my plants adjusting to the new substrate, which did cause slight decomposition. My fish are really enjoying the tank though!

There ya go 😉 Always usually a nice tasty snack. You are right about the outbreak - new soil, new setup....Glad the fish are enjoying the tank! Well done! 🤘

Vicki K thank you! Appreciate you checking it out!

The Fishy Life - I absolutely do and I can say with some degree of certainty they are freshwater limpets. You can google them. I've had these before and am now realizing I completely forgot to talk about these guys in the video. Totally harmless. They are in the same family as slugs and snails.

Aridian - definitely could be! It was pretty tough to see...I tried to identify as closely as I could, but I definitely could be off...I'm not a scientist by any means. The main point that hopefully got across in the video was that many of these little critters are harmless to our fish - I know a lot of beginners freak out when they see them

That would have been a nice snack for your guppy!!

+MegaAppleshit scuds can also show up as hitchhikers, absolutely. Feeder shrimp...bigger than seed shrimp but they could show up from your fish store if they sell scuds as live bait. Won’t harm your fish. It’s a snack if the fish can fit it into its mouth 😀

Hi Alex - I would feed once a day. I usually feed mine once at night 👍

@@dmichaelsfishden perfect ive been over feeding then 😅😂