ID on Growth in Sump

[riemski]

These furry little egg looking creatures - what are they? And I cannot believe how tube worms spread - at least that is what I think they are. How do they get in here and grow like this? They apparently do not require much light as my sump is in my basement. Should I start getting rid of these? Will they spread and take over my tank? Thanks for anyones help.

 

[bigarn]

they're q-tip sponges ... nothing to worry about and a sign of a healthy system. they're harmless filter feeders.

 

[texasmetal]

What bigarn said.
Your tank was apparently well-seeded when you started it up. These things start out planktonic and then settle somewhere for the next stage of their life. You won't see a lot of them in your display because other things will prey on them. In your sump they're protected from predation.

 

[mr.clownfish]

i thought they are feather dusters

 

[spanko]

There are some feather dusters in the picture. The Q-tips are on the right side, egg shaped, with a little bristle cluster at one end.

 

[riemski]

That is good to know they are harmless and beneficial. I use bio-bail in my sump to help eliminate any micro-bubbles getting back into the display tank, and i believe i have thousands of these q-tip sponges in this. I was repositioning the bail and it broke free many of these that went into the display. The fish were in a frenzy eating them! I will try not to to distub them in the future.

 

[cranberry]

A few pineapple sponges are cool, but I don't consider them a sign ones tank is doing good necessarily. Not that it means it's doing bad either. But when these get really prolific it means there is food available for them to eat (filter). The more nutrients available, the more they populate. The more nutrients available to them means there is also more available to everything else in the tank.... like nuisance algaes.
When I see them coming around, I step up the water changes, and they fizzle out in time. But they are a fun addition to the biodiversity in controlled numbers.