robertmun Posted March 15, 2003 Share Posted March 15, 2003 Hello all, my first post here... I just started a 20g mini-reef with live rock and sand and nothing else yet. I've noticed some tiny (smaller than pinhead) white critters walking and jumping around on the black acrylic back of my tank. They look like fleas. What are these and do I need to get rid of them? If so, how? Thanks, Robert Link to comment
Satchmo Posted March 15, 2003 Share Posted March 15, 2003 copa-copa-copepods. They're good. You don't want to get rid of them. Link to comment
robertmun Posted March 15, 2003 Author Share Posted March 15, 2003 Thank you ... Fuzz Monkey? Link to comment
chrisblore Posted March 15, 2003 Share Posted March 15, 2003 The white critters are likely copepods that came on the live rock. Their presence is normally a good indicator that you have a healthy tank and that everything is as it should be. They will also provide a source of food for your livestock when you get it and therefore I see no need to get rid of them. My latest tank (set up 8 weeks ago) now has literally thousands of copepods all over the live rock and glass and my coral propagation system is overrun with them and they are not a destructive influence at all. Good luck with your reef Chris Link to comment
robertmun Posted March 15, 2003 Author Share Posted March 15, 2003 Thanks. Which livestock will take advantage of these and feed on them if control is needed? Link to comment
chrisblore Posted March 15, 2003 Share Posted March 15, 2003 There are many types of fish that will predate on copepods but there are a few that are more widely renowned as copepod eaters. Sixline Wrasse - lovely creatures that are constantly picking over the rocks to find food and can be purchased very cheaply from most LFS (even here in rip-off Britain! ) I can thoroughly recommend these as beautiful and active fish perfect for most nano reefs. Mandarins - Not normally recommended for nanos due to their requirements for huge amounts of pods but still nice creatures. If you can get one guaranteed feeding on frozen food, then you may be OK but that is unfortunately very rare and without huge amounts of copepods, they will very quickly starve. See this link for further details:-Spotted mandarin dragonet goby Otherwise, there are a number of small gobies and blennies that will constantly sift the sand looking for food whilst at the same time removing detritus and algae. These are some of my favorite fish for nano reefs because of their excellent characters and interesting behaviour. Some (such as the watchman goby) are also commonly sold with commensal shrimps like pistol shrimps that will live in the burrow that the goby digs in exchange for protection against predation. Do you have/plan to have a refugium? This would greatly assist in increasing the pod population if you do decide to buy one of the aforementioned fish and is now considered by many to be a prerequisite for setting up a reef tank. If you have any more questions, please do not hesitate to ask Chris Link to comment
Joe_fro Posted March 16, 2003 Share Posted March 16, 2003 I have a bi-colored Blenny that loves to pick the copepods off the glass in my tank. He loves them to death. It took me a while to figure out why he kept biting the wall until i saw all these crazy little critters. bi-colored's are cool to look at, easy to care for and cheap, i got mine for about $12. and they go nicely in a nano seeing that they dont exceed 2 1/2- 3 inches in length. Make sure they have a good hiding spot though, they love to hide in little holes and crevices. hope this helps joe Link to comment
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