# Can anyone identify these bugs???



## Kip (Jun 29, 2007)

Woke to find these all over the OUTSIDE of my tank ... crawling all over the front glass by the hundreds. Any ideas what they are? What to do? Are they snail larvae?


----------



## HeyPK (Jan 23, 2004)

Those look like mites. There are thousands of mite species with a big variety of foods that they eat. Below is a picture of grain mites that multiply on grain that has gotten damp.


----------



## Kip (Jun 29, 2007)

Wow, that does look like them! What to do with them???


----------



## joycould (Mar 13, 2007)

They look a little like aphids, the type that are on house plants.


----------



## icex (Feb 7, 2008)

Man, that's nasty and sucks. Good luck with getting ready of them.


----------



## HeyPK (Jan 23, 2004)

They must have found something to eat. Maybe they are wandering around now because they have eaten it all up. They are probably harmless.


----------



## bert (Sep 21, 2007)

those same little creatures are crawling all over my shrimp pellets packet. I continued feeding and it hasn't done any harm so far


----------



## Luisjose (Nov 9, 2007)

They are most probably collembolas (or springtails) and less likely mites. there are several speciesbut not as many as mites. I have seen them feeding on detritus, fishfood leftovers that might remain on the outside, also can survive on top of floating plants. A closer inspection can determine what they really are. Some of them jump and you can see that if you poke them with the tip of pencil. To get rid of the infestation, trow away the food that contains the springtails, wipe clean the surface of your tank: above the watersurface, on top of the hood, around the tank with a moist paper towel. Alternatively, use 70% ethanol on the outside surface of your tank. They do not do any harm that I have observed but they are sometimes annoying to see so many of them.
good luck!


----------



## customdrumfinishes (Apr 1, 2008)

i would def clean that tank outside and rim for several days to get rid of the critters! there are so many billons and billions of little critters in local ponds and streams like that but the fish are fine, if you only knew that before you went swimming!


----------

