nemo's mom Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 There are strange things afoot in my axolotl tank. It is a smaller tank (45cm long and YES, I am getting a bigger one) and has a UGF. I feed my axo pellets and also the odd worm. I have noticed lately that there are small (very small - like dust size) wee yellow 'mites' in the water. There are hundreds of them and they are all moving around like mad. Pedro (my axo) doesnt seem worried about them, but I am. I am also guessing that even if I completely empty the tank and start afresh that I will still miss some and they will then multiply etc. Does anyone have any idea of what they are and how I can treat them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 if theyre worm like they could be planaria, if theyre Y shaped i have them (cant remember that name but i can find out) and if theyre flea shaped theyre daphnia. lots of things can be found in tanks and most of them arent harmfull but its good to know exactly what you have cause it stops stress aye lol. no need to empty the whole tank but do cut down on feeding (what size is he?) and you should see them drop off cause alot of them thrive on the extra food. now onto the more important part, get rid of your gravel, even if you handfeed axies can still snap at any smell and they will eat it and it can cause death if they cant pass it, sand or nothing is normally the best, large river rocks are hard to keep clean, big pieces of slate get used to. if you would like to look into sand let me know i have some which i use in my tank or you can get it from bunnings (plasterers sand). www.axolotl.org is a good site (nearly as good as this one lol) and if you read around you will come across some horror stories bout gravel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nemo's mom Posted March 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 So what do you use as filtration? Can you still use an UGF? My axo is only fairly young (under a year old) and is about 23cm long. He/she is a wild coloured one. The beasties in his/her tank are yellow and roundish (could be flea shaped? Too small to tell) but they are moving around like crazy! There are HEAPS of them. Cant see them when standing away from the tank but can when you are up close. Are they harmful? Also, do you have a way to sex axo's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 i use nothing for filtration but i use airstones in summer when the waters warmer but i keep on top of my water changes religiously and larger bodies are easier to keep stable than smaller ones. most people go for a nice internal that you can turn down cause they hate the strong current. cant really use UGF with sand cause it gets so dense and would obviously go thru the plates lol. at 23cm you should be feeding every 2-3 days approx and try to get out any uneaten food food (got a turkey baster? cause they work wonders for spot cleaning poops and picking out uneaten food :lol: ) im not sure what they could be sorry, i think daphnia are brown, no chance of some pics, probably be really hard though if theyre super small. sexing is pretty easy but its not fool proof, the females obviously get fat and have a very small bump between their back legs, males are skinnier and have a large cloaca (bum bump). some go by head and tail width but theyre less reliable but some swear by it. only way to be 100% sure is to see them do their thing. the axolotl site i posted above has a sexing part with pics on it but no above veiws, if youd like some let me know and i can snap some of mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nemo's mom Posted March 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Just been lookin around the site now. really good! I feed pedro every 2-3 days and he/she NEVER leaves any food! LOL! He is a piggy! Am doing up another big tank on a stand for him this weekend. Might get really big pebbles (as suggested in the website you gave) and keep using my UGF. I really like how clear it keeps the water with little work. I do water changes, but only about every three weeks. In between I add more fresh water as it evaporates. He/she is actually my sons which was brought for him after I kept killing all his goldfish (yes, I am really that bad at fishkeeping!) but I have a real soft spot for 'ole pedro. He is very unique and more 'cuddly' than a fish. Would love to see some pics of yours! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Cyclops ring a bell Sha?? Alan 104 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 they had some really funky name alan, could be cyclops- theyre Y shaped and swim in jerky movements, the V part is their 'tail' which holds the eggs im told. dont bother me just look funny lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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