Someone help me Identify this.

pbega

Member
I just started cyling my new tank. I put 100# LR in it last Saturday. Last night I noticed this little creature that is just a little smaller than a "Doo-Doo bug". It generally takes the same shape. Has probably 50 tiny legs under the shell and is brown and grey for a shell color. Any ideas? Too small for me to try and take a pic.
 
A What-What bug?
Is that like a "pill bug" or "rollie pollie"
If that is what you are talking about, I have seen a couple in my tank too, except their shells are covered in coralline so they blend in perfectly. You can't even find them till they start moving. It would be impossible to get a photo. It would just look like part of the LR.
The appear to be some sort of Large isopod. But that is just a guess. Maybe someone else has an ID.
Interesting.....MCF
 
Sorry Bang Guy....
The ones I have are about 3/8" long X 1/4" wide. very low to the ground, and move kind of slow, you almost don't notice them moving until you realize "hey that spot used to be down there" I guess. Steady, slow movement.
HTH...........MCF
 

pbega

Member
You say tomato...I say doo doo bug. Rollie Polie...whatever....yes that is what I was talking about.
 

pbega

Member
Yes it does....Legs are shorter, and probably only 2mm long. But overall, yeah, that's what it resembles. It buries itself in the sand during the day, and swims around at night. Upside down, rightside up, any and all directions
 
S

simm

Guest
Hey Bang Guy. That last pic you posted. What are they and are they good?
 

bang guy

Moderator

Originally posted by simm
Hey Bang Guy. That last pic you posted. What are they and are they good?

The picture posted is of a Cirolanid isopod I removed from a Clownfish two years ago. They are evil incarnate and I feel very fortunate to have caught them all before they could breed.
This particular Cirolanid is carniverous and a very tough customer. It can and will attack humans. Many Cirolanids are not carniverous, but there is one large specie that can infest and kill large Sharks.
 
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simm

Guest
yicks. That sux. Cool you got it out. What about the first pic you posted?
 
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simm

Guest
Cool. Thanks a bunch for the helpful info. Iv got a few of the Munnid isopods running around.
 
The isopod looking things I have in my tank must have a calcerous shell like a snail, hard to explain, but might explain the growth of coralline for camoflauge. I can't see any eye stalks or fleshy foot like a snail or other mollusk. Which is why I think it is some type of isopod.
The "shell" is oval shaped but goes right to the bottom, what I mean is little to no clearance between shell and LR.
I don't know, its not a munnid isopod, in my case. I have tons of them and its not. It is not like the Cirolanid isopod either. It is not transparent at all.
If I see it again I will try to take a pic, but I doubt it will showup. The only distinguishing marks it has from the LR is maybe 3 or 4 white lines that go across the shell, like a rib. That is how I saw it in the first plase. I watched the set of lines move from the bottom of a piece or LR to the top.
I don't expect anyone to be able to identify it by description alone. Just thought someone else might have seen something similar.
Thanks for any responses.....MCF
 

bang guy

Moderator
I think Sammy nailed it with the Chiton. It's the mention of legs that threw me off.
Originally posted by Draxx
Bang Guy -
I think I saw one of those evil incarnates in my 15H fuge about a month ago. How do they breed? I noticed a bunch of little things crawling on the glass in the fuge last night that did not look like amphipods. Could those be its babies?

All Isopods have a brood pouch where eggs are laid and they stay there until they hatch as fully functioning Isopods.
The Cirolanids tend to not climb the walls. and prefer to hide in the sand or rock.
 
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