White, fast-moving (crawling) creature on the glass... what is this?

[creacom]

I have looked around and I cannot find anything that matches this. It is about 0.8mm long and appearing to have three parts (head, torso, and abdomen), and antennae. They appear to run quickly along the surface, but I have also seen them appear to swim (could just be the strong current).

I do not have any fish or coral in my aquariums yet. Just some snails and hermit crabs. I am still "experimenting" and was playing with a 150W lamp tonight. Once the light warmed up I saw these white spots on the back wall and the front glass.

Any ideas what they are? Are they harmful/beneficial? Will they be food?

[shrimpchips]

Aliens!!!!


Probably copepods. Good. Leave them be.

[ajx22]

Amphipods / Isopods - referred to as Pods (in conjunction with their much smaller cousins - Copepods ).

See the Stickies at the top of this forum:
http://www.aquariumpros.ca/forums/showthread.php?t=24180

[creacom]

Amphipods / Isopods - referred to as Pods (in conjunction with their much smaller cousins - Copepods ).

See the Stickies at the top of this forum:
http://www.aquariumpros.ca/forums/showthread.php?t=24180


Thanks. I did look through the sticky threads (and others in this and other forums) but I was not convinced that what I saw in the tank was the same as what was in the posted images. (I need a more powerful macro lens.)

I guess they are thriving because I have no fish to eat them yet. Should I feed them something?

[J_T]

You already are feeding them. They are eating algaes.

[creacom]

Thanks for the help. I have one other question, but I am not certain anyone can help with this until I get a photo.

A snail died in my tank a couple of weeks ago. When I saw it, there were two small (possibly 2mm long) translucent creatures running back and forth near it. They looked a bit white, translucent, and I think they had a number of legs.

I just got a glimpse of them then they disappeared. I have seen one since and only once. Any good guesses as to what it might be so I can look for images? I have not been able to capture an image of it. They appear to be quite camera shy.

[torontoleafs_rock]

probably more pods they usually make homes of empty shells