Green Hydra...everywhere!

[Devilishturtles]

Hey guys. I've got an outbreak of green hydra all over my tank. It's on the leaves of my plants, the glass, filter, driftwood, everywhere. I noticed earlier today that the newer "generation" of hydra in my tank seem to be getting fatter and fatter (ie: larger and more visible).

I guess my questions are: Is there any way these hyrda would be detrimental to my plants and tank? And is there anyway to get rid of them that doesn't involve tearing down the aquarium and starting over? I'm assuming fish will eat them, but what about shrimp? I had planned on making this tank (10 gallons) fishless. I may add in a betta fish, but was wondering about how some shrimp would do.

Thanks guys!

 

[Purrbox]

Green Hydra Info

 

[Devilishturtles]

Thanks for the link, Purrbox. You sent me that link in chat a few weeks ago when I inquired about the hydra.

Do you know how I could get rid of them? Or if the fish and shrimp witll eat them? The site mentions that it's predators are flatworms, crustaceans, and acquatic insects. It also makes a mention of fish fry. I guess it's a hit and miss thing.

I also guess since the hydra appear to be autotrophs, they won't harm my plants in any way? They won't burrow into the leaves or harm them?

They are just unsightly. I guess this means my water quality is good, so that's a good sign. I just don't like looking at them.

 

[Purrbox]

I couldn't remember if that was you or someone else that I'd given the link to. Either way I figured it help out anyone else that found the thread doing research on Hydra.

They should be perfectly fine with your plants. Certain fish and shrimp will eat them, I just don't happen to know which ones. They're really only a concern if you are breeding fish or shrimp in the tank.

I've found that my tank which has these I find that the population stays under control by scraping them off along with the green spot algae during water changes. This doesn't get rid of them altogether though (not that I've specifically tried to get rid of them).

I think that JChillin listed off some specific fish that will eat them when I mentioned that I had them in my tank. Perhaps he can help us out with a list.

 

[Toirtis]

Hydra will predate small fish (fry-sized) and small shrimp, but fear not, mollies really like to eat hydra....a dose of Flubendazole (an anti-parasitical medication) will also make hydra vanish quickly (and not harm your fish, either).

 

[voo]

that site also lists daphnia as a predator. You could add some of them to clear up the hydra and then add a fish to clear up the daphnia

Edit - after having a second look at that page it also lists daphnia as prey, so maybe it wont work

 

[Devilishturtles]

Thanks guys! Purrbox, I think I witnessed my MTS munching them last night. Atleast, when it crawled over the hydra and stopped to inspect, half of it was gone! Dunno if it just "broke" or was munched.

Toirtis, thanks for the info. They don't bother me enough to dose with an anti-parasite med...yet. If mollies eat them, I'm sure other fish will love them too. I just wasn't sure.

voo, thanks for the suggestion. I'm gonna try adding fish first (no fish yet, just the plants are nice enough to look at for me) but a few are on the way.