Stow aways

[theblondie616]

Hi everyone. I noticed that there are super tiny bugs in my tank. I think they came with my axolotl. Are they sea monkeys? Am I going to have a problem? Also my tank is still cycling. Im doing 20% changes a day. My tank has been having ammonia spikes for about 3 weeks now. How long can this last? Thanx

 

[carsona246]

cyclops. tiny copepods that you'll find in your tank, not harmful at all
cycling can take up to 9 weeks, do you get any nitrite readings yet?

 

[Ed]

Without a picture I'm guessing that they could be copepods. See What is that bug in my Aquarium? .:. Various small creatures that can inhabit a Freshwater Invertebrate Aquarium

Ed

 

[yellowpebble]

hey,

tank invaders are very common, and most often do no harm at all. Can you describe what they look like so we can give a more acurate diagnosis? we like photos too

 

[theblondie616]

Um there so small its hard to say. They look to me like they have antennas and a tail of sorts. They move in jerky motions through the water. Um my nitrite no2 is 0 and my nitrate is between 0 and 5.0. That was just before I did a water change

 

[yellowpebble]

this is a good list of all sorts of stow aways and what to do about them. do they match any of these?

Caudata Culture Articles - Aquarium Invaders: Photographs

Caudata Culture Articles - Aquarium Invaders: Algae, Snails, Worms and Other Critters

 

[theblondie616]

Copepods I think. Thanx did the list

 

[yellowpebble]

no worries. They are harmelss, and it means you have a well established cycled tank. If you ever raise larvae, they are a good food source for them. If you find them unapealing, doing water changes will drop their numbers

 

[theblondie616]

I'm doing 20% water changes every day but the tank seems to be over run