Tiny white critters hitched a ride on plant shipment: ???

[strawtarget]

There are some TINY white creatures that are on the plants and near the back wall of the tank. There aren't that many of them, but I'm hoping someone here can help ID them in case they're parasites that will harm fish or something.

1. They're so small that they're almost not visible.

2. Some of them move slowly across the surface of the glass (like snails, but they're not snails.)

3. Some of them move in rapid bursts of speed and then stop dead, then burst again. Like they pop from one place to another, fast.

So are these things like tiny shrimp or something? Fish food? Or are they parasites that might hurt any fish that I add?

I wish I could take a picture or give a better description. Any guesses would be great, though... thanks!

[black hills tj]

i've never had diatoms myself but these sound like diatoms from the other threads i've seen

[theotheragentm]

They sound like some sort of water flea. They're nothing to be concerned about.

[Sicklid]

They are just copepods. Nothing to worry about. Some fish will see them and eat them, I have them in my planted Betta tank and I see him hunting them all the time.

[Zagz]

Definately not diatoms, that is a form of algae.
Either copepods or nematodes. Neither is to worry about.

[black hills tj]

Originally Posted by Zagz

Definately not diatoms, that is a form of algae.
Either copepods or nematodes. Neither is to worry about.

Ahh...I gotcha. Thanks for the correction.

[chase33]

Can you get a picture of them?

[strawtarget]

Thanks everyone! I did a search on "copepods" and that sounds like them, alright.