# Looks like little spiders..What are they?!?



## icharus (Jun 21, 2007)

I have some dwarf riccia tied down with netting on some rocks and i was thinking about taking them out for some grooming when i noticed that there was something clinging to the riccia in one area. They look like little spiders with a small bulb and 4-5 legs. They don't move but the legs sway around an seem to be sticking to the riccia. Does anyone know what the are? I have a dwarf puffer, 1 otto, 3 amano shrimp and 20 cherry red shrimp. I would take a picture.. but i can't zoom in enough to capture them. They are about 1 cm big

Edit: here is a pic i drew with paint that shows how they are attached to the leaves


----------



## dhavoc (Mar 17, 2006)

hydra, do a search here for cures. only an issue if you have small fish fry or shrimps.


----------



## mikenas102 (Feb 8, 2006)

Definitely Hydra by the looks of your drawing. They eat small organisms like copepods and daphnia but might also target baby shrimp or fish fry if you have any. If they don't bother you there's really no need to get rid of them unless your really infested with them. I've heard people say that they are actually a sign of good water quality because they won't live in bad conditions, don't know how true that part is though.


----------



## rs79 (Dec 7, 2004)

They're a bugger to get rid of. Formalin seems to work the best although you can starve them to death too. They will eat baby fish.


----------



## icharus (Jun 21, 2007)

thanks for the info guys.. what else do they eat besides small fry and shrimp?


----------



## yoink (Aug 31, 2005)

Just wait it out, they will go away in a couple/few weeks. I had them in a shrimp tank and they did not harm the baby shrimp in any way.


----------

