Tiny white specks...

[Ocicat]

...So I thought I had a micro bubble problem... and then I turned off my return pump for a while. When the water is still, most of the tiny white specks that I thought were bubbles just hang there suspended in the water - or else they move around! Some of them land on the glass and crawl around on it. They are absolutely tiny - I can't make out legs or anything, and you can't really focus on them without getting right up next to the glass. I need to get a magnifying glass.

Does anyone know what the heck they are? There are thousands of them, although it's hard to tell whether they're all alive or if it's a mix of these creatures + some other suspended particles (salt precipitate??). Their movement is jerky and sudden - they dart and then freeze in place. There are so many that the tank is cloudy.

 

[chadfarmer]

can you get a pic and please give some info on the tank

 

[Ocicat]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8001416#post8001416 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chadfarmer
can you get a pic and please give some info on the tank

:mixed:

 

[Ocicat]

P.S. Even if I HAD a functional camera, these things are way too tiny without a specialized lens of some kind.

 

[Letmegrow]

Pods. The cope kind.

 

[Chelsey]

http://melevsreef.com/id/pods.html

 

[Ocicat]

Yayyy, I know enough to know that those are good. I always imagined them being bigger. So as soon as I finish cycling, it's time for a mandarin, right?

 

[chadfarmer]

welcome to having life in the tank-- didnt know if you got rock yet

 

[chadfarmer]

i wouldnt say you need a mandarin, the population will slowly go away

 

[Ocicat]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8003904#post8003904 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chadfarmer
welcome to having life in the tank-- didnt know if you got rock yet

Wow I guess you really meant it when you said you couldn't believe it w/o a pic....

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=904928

 

[Ocicat]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8003912#post8003912 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chadfarmer
i wouldnt say you need a mandarin, the population will slowly go away

I think the psychedelic mandarins look awesome, but I always hear that they need tons of pods to survive. Do you think he'd eat them all, or could their population keep ahead of his appetite? Right now there are easily thousands, probably tens of thousands, in there.

 

[capncapo]

If your tank hasn't cycled I wouldn't get my hopes up too high.

You may lose a big percentage of them during the cycle.

If you listen to the experts, it isn't really recommended that you purchase a mandarin until your tank has aged for at least 6 months .... one year being a better choice.

 

[Ocicat]

OK, thanks.

 

[bsthom01]

I've recently been told the same thing by a couple of folks... It appears that you need a constant supply of pods to keep mandarins healthy long term. I was recommended to wait at least 6-9 months before thinking about it. It was also thinking of setting up a refugium as a safe-house to grow more pods...

 

[Ocicat]

bsthom, I'm thinking of doing the same thing. I was planning to wait a while on the refugium, but now I'm thinking I should set one up sooner rather than later, before I start adding any potential pod predators to the tank, so they don't all get eaten before they have a safe place to repopulate.

 

[Ocicat]

Water cloudy b/c of pods:

Here is a very helpful closeup of the swarm

 

[Chelsey]

Nice tank Ocicat!!!

 

[Ocicat]

Thanks!!

 

[dirtywater]

Ocicat thank you for the thread. I'm new to the hobby and have the same problem. I too thought it was micro bubbles but it is definitely little white speck creatures. My tank, 70 gallon, was started in May and the tank is very cloudy b/c of them. I would like it to be clear. what are some suggestions for controlling the population so the tank is clear? i.e. any other fish or filter feeders eat these guys?

 

[Ocicat]

My white speck (er, pod) population has dropped significantly over the last few days - probably due to the cycle as was predicted by those-in-the-know above. There are still a lot in there, but nothing like the swarms I had for a few days. (And even though I know they are great to have, it IS nice for my tank to be clearer!)

Do you have fish in your tank? From what I have read, their population usually drops considerably when you add fish. I guess they are a popular food for more than just mandarins.