Strange white fuzzy tendrils on my new pennywort?

[frglgs]

I'm currently cycling a tank for an axolotl. I bought some pennywort and placed it in my tank about a week ago. When I got it, I rinsed it off and checked for snails/snail eggs. Today, I noticed that there are thesw white fuzzy tendrils growing on the plant (they look like spider legs). It's only growing on this plant, everything else in my tank is fine. I don't know if it's a normal thing that new plants go through (although this hasn't happened to my other plants) or if it's something more serious. What should I do?

 

[frglgs]

I took the plant out and quarantined it in another container that I filled with fresh dechlorinated water and used a turkey baster to try and siphon out the particles it left behind. Then I did a 30% water change and added additional water to the tank to hopefully help get rid of the leftover residue. I still don't know what this stuff is though. Bummer too because I was planning on getting an axolotl soon but this set me back by a couple weeks

Now that I think about it, do you think they're snail eggs? I looked at pictures online to compare but they're different. The bubble on my plant vary in size and shape, but snail eggs come in clusters and are more uniform. Hmm...

Still doesn't explain the white fuzzy tendrils though.

 

[Murk]

The tendrils are roots, so that's good. Normally, they would grow down until they reach substrate, rooting the plant into place. Try to keep these whole - they're beneficial.

The fuzziness is an algae (or fungus, but it looks more like algae) that's unrelated to the tendrils/roots.
I wouldn't know what kind - not an algae expert. The fact that it started on this one plant seems to indicate that it came along with the plant. You're still not seeing any of it on the other plants? I can also see it growing on the rocks and the thermometer, so it seems to be spreading.

You should be able to get most of the algae off by simply gently pulling on it (try not to damage the roots or the leaves). If it rapidly grows back, that's a sign there's something wrong with the light/nutrition balance. Since the tank is still cycling, that wouldn't be necessarily worrisome either.
What kind of light do you have, and how long is it on each day? Do you have recent water parameters measurements?

The bubbles are not snail eggs, but simply bubbles. It's pretty common for bubbles to get stuck in these fuzzy, hairlike types of algae (and rapid algae growth also produces a lot of bubbles on its own).

 

[frglgs]

The tendrils are roots, so that's good. Normally, they would grow down until they reach substrate, rooting the plant into place. Try to keep these whole - they're beneficial.

The fuzziness is an algae (or fungus, but it looks more like algae) that's unrelated to the tendrils/roots.
I wouldn't know what kind - not an algae expert. The fact that it started on this one plant seems to indicate that it came along with the plant. You're still not seeing any of it on the other plants? I can also see it growing on the rocks and the thermometer, so it seems to be spreading.

You should be able to get most of the algae off by simply gently pulling on it (try not to damage the roots or the leaves). If it rapidly grows back, that's a sign there's something wrong with the light/nutrition balance. Since the tank is still cycling, that wouldn't be necessarily worrisome either.
What kind of light do you have, and how long is it on each day? Do you have recent water parameters measurements?

The bubbles are not snail eggs, but simply bubbles. It's pretty common for bubbles to get stuck in these fuzzy, hairlike types of algae (and rapid algae growth also produces a lot of bubbles on its own).

I have a Top Fin 8” Color changing LED light bar that I keep on roughly 10-12 hours of the day. I bought this one because it’s small and inexpensive (I also usually use the white LED setting that doesn’t change)

For water parameters: Ammonia is at .50 ppm, Nitrite at ~0, and Nitrate between 1-5 ppm (the nitrate is hardest to read because the colors doesn’t have a super drastic change).

I keep a small cooling fan right above where the plant is, do you think that is possibly affecting it in any way?


I checked and yeah, the algae has already come back today. There’s not as much of it though:

 

[Murk]

OK, so 12 hours of light is relatively much. Plants mainly use nitrates to grow, and in your uncycled tank you do not yet have a steady nitrate supply. Algae are less finicky and enjoy ammonia as well.

So what you have is a tank with lots of light and plants that can't quite use it (since they lack nitrates). For algae, this is an ideal environment: plenty of light and very little competition.

The good news is that if you cut back on the lighting (try 10 hours at first, then 8 - I think 8 should be plenty) and your tank's cycle gets going, most of the algae should be outcompeted by the plants eventually.
There are also plenty of snails who love this stuff, but I understand you're trying very hard to keep the tank snail-free?

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Keep in mind I could also be completely wrong! Diagnosing from pictures is always hard
If the new plant has lots of brownish, soft stems and leaves, it might be it didn't take to the move very well and is rotting in places - in that case the fuzzy stuff might be fungus as well. Should disappear on its own.
If the fuzzy stuff feels slimy instead of fuzzy, it could be a bacterial bloom as well. That would be more curious.

 

[frglgs]

OK, so 12 hours of light is relatively much. Plants mainly use nitrates to grow, and in your uncycled tank you do not yet have a steady nitrate supply. Algae are less finicky and enjoy ammonia as well.

So what you have is a tank with lots of light and plants that can't quite use it (since they lack nitrates). For algae, this is an ideal environment: plenty of light and very little competition.

The good news is that if you cut back on the lighting (try 10 hours at first, then 8 - I think 8 should be plenty) and your tank's cycle gets going, most of the algae should be outcompeted by the plants eventually.
There are also plenty of snails who love this stuff, but I understand you're trying very hard to keep the tank snail-free?

----

Keep in mind I could also be completely wrong! Diagnosing from pictures is always hard
If the new plant has lots of brownish, soft stems and leaves, it might be it didn't take to the move very well and is rotting in places - in that case the fuzzy stuff might be fungus as well. Should disappear on its own.
If the fuzzy stuff feels slimy instead of fuzzy, it could be a bacterial bloom as well. That would be more curious.

Thank you for being so helpful! Yeah, I don’t want any snails at all. Also, when I was taking the algae off it felt slimy instead of fuzzy, like you said. This is all so weird???