bugs in aquarium

[kevthefishy]

hi got these little black bugs on the underside of my aquarium lid, washed lid in bleach and left off for a week but the bugs returned. any ideas?

 

[Rocky998]

Weird... Never seen those little guys before. Hopefully someone can help you, sorry I couldnt

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Not one I've seen before either... so it least it isn't any of the most common/alarming predatory species that sometimes invade aquariums.
What's your tank/room set up? Have you added any new plants fairly recently? Anything that may have come from a pond? How many of these bugs have you seen and any rough guide to how large they are?

 

[kevthefishy]

Not one I've seen before either... so it least it isn't any of the most common/alarming predatory species that sometimes invade aquariums.
What's your tank/room set up? Have you added any new plants fairly recently? Anything that may have come from a pond? How many of these bugs have you seen and any rough guide to how large they are?

thanks. tanks been set up about 3 years. no plants, all plastic, they are no more than a coulple of mm in size. there were lots of them, now i keep wiping them of the lid, more appear but im keeping them at bay?

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

thanks. tanks been set up about 3 years. no plants, all plastic, they are no more than a coulple of mm in size. there were lots of them, now i keep wiping them of the lid, more appear but im keeping them at bay?

It's honestly bizarre, I don't think I've seen a beetle/bug like that at all, let alone concerning any aquarium or even pond. It doesn't even really look like an aquatic type of bug. Any chance the room has an infestation/invasion from somewhere, and perhaps the bus gather under the lid where they can get moisture, without drowning? Ever seen one in the water or on the surface?

@AbbeysDad @Essjay @GaryE @mbsqw1d @Wills , any ideas? Tagging other Brits with aquarium/pond/bug knowledge!

 

[GaryE]

This is where the international nature of our forum can limit us - I have never seen those. With the right fish, they wouldn't be there long though...

If any of the Brits want to invite me to stay for a few months, I could probably get your home infested with all kinds of crawling, hopping and flying fish food though!

I'd call harmless but potentially annoying on those.

 

[kevthefishy]

It's honestly bizarre, I don't think I've seen a beetle/bug like that at all, let alone concerning any aquarium or even pond. It doesn't even really look like an aquatic type of bug. Any chance the room has an infestation/invasion from somewhere, and perhaps the bus gather under the lid where they can get moisture, without drowning? Ever seen one in the water or on the surface?

@AbbeysDad @Essjay @GaryE @mbsqw1d @Wills , any ideas? Tagging other Brits with aquarium/pond/bug knowledge!

no not in the water

 

[Wills]

New to me too. My guess is they are not growing in the lid but more likely in the water and hatching out to the surface. What fish do you have in the tank?

 

[kevthefishy]

New to me too. My guess is they are not growing in the lid but more likely in the water and hatching out to the surface. What fish do you have in the tank?

thanks for the reply. got harliquins, mollys, platys, pleco,kribanis, danios angles, golden barbs

 

[I Like Rare Fish]

It doesn’t look like a bug that hatches out of the water - it looks more like an accidental carry-on and I say this because the bug has large antennae and a relatively wide body, which is not a characteristic of the bugs that I’ve seen hatch from the water. Just to be safe, I would do a large sweep of the inside tank, plus a sweep of the lid and the lip of the tank. I would also rinse the lid thoroughly because they still haven’t been identified and might not be harmless.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

This is where the international nature of our forum can limit us - I have never seen those. With the right fish, they wouldn't be there long though...

If any of the Brits want to invite me to stay for a few months, I could probably get your home infested with all kinds of crawling, hopping and flying fish food though!

I'd call harmless but potentially annoying on those.

I'm sorry, I don't know why I thought you were a Brit! Maybe just saw you using (obviously, the superior ) British English spellings, and lumped you in with us British riff raff accidentally

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I'd have thought the mollies and angels at least would be chowing down on those things. Maybe they're fast and evade quickly.

Maybe try submitting the pic to a British bug forum/website type place. There are folks out there as obsessive about bugs as we are about fish. If you do find an answer though, please let us know! I'd be curious.

 

[connorlindeman]

I'm sorry, I don't know why I thought you were a Brit! Maybe just saw you using (obviously, the superior ) British English spellings, and lumped you in with us British riff raff accidentally

@AbbeysDad is from the US as well

 

[Lynnzer]

I was at aquarist centre not too long ago, that also had a reptile section with snakes, frogs, lizards etc. It's an amazing place.
However they feed the reptiles these sort of things. I have actually seen escapees wandering around in the fish section like cockroaches in a kitchen.
If you've bought any items from such a place it's possible there were eggs on them that have hatched. As it appears they are attracted to warm moist places, and possibly darker places, it's unlikely that they are roaming free in the house.
Personally I'd do as suggested and subscribe to a bug forum. It may be that the bugs are edible and if so, why waste good fish food?

 

[GaryE]

I'm sorry, I don't know why I thought you were a Brit! Maybe just saw you using (obviously, the superior ) British English spellings, and lumped you in with us British riff raff accidentally

Canadian spelling follows British patterns, in most cases. Not all. We are elegant riff raff here.