# Whats on Leaf Litter ??



## shugz (Apr 4, 2016)

HELLO EVERYONE !! so ide like to start out im a beginner at the whole vivarium/frog deal, this is my first post, and i had taken some leaf litter from the front yard and ran it in the microwave for a min to use in my transition box with my new froggy's but i noticed today it looks like something is growing on a leaf.. kinda looks like little yellow dots hovering above the leaf, like little trichomes or maybe eggs ?? idk but i removed it. setting up my permanent tank today and i took more leaf little and washed with 2% h202 then microwaved for a min and then rinsed them off.. is that sufficient ? should i be worried about the fuzzy (not like mold) grow on the leaf ? should i be worried about anything ??


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## Dane (Aug 19, 2004)

By heating it in the microwave for an extended period, you probably nuked most of the surface organisms into oblivion. This left the available nutrients open to whatever happened to survive, or may have already been present in your vivarium/ambient air. Even after your expanded sanitation efforts, you will likely see the same thing happen again. It's a normal part of a vivarium becoming established, is unlikely to pose any threat to your frogs, and should disappear in a few days-weeks. A thriving microfauna population will usually help reduce the mold/fungi blooms faster.

Edit: I do want to add that it is certainly preferable to wait on adding frogs to an enclosure until AFTER these types of visual cues subside.


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## jbherpin (Oct 16, 2009)

These are fungal spores. These are normal to a degree. However, this looks to be a bit too much in my opinion. The best leaf litter to use are oak leaves, or magnolia leaves. These are stiff, and resistant to mold growth. Best of luck.

JBear


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## tardis101 (Apr 11, 2012)

It's just mold. I really wouldn't worry about it.

Welcome to the forum!!

Mike


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## shugz (Apr 4, 2016)

wow really fast on the reply's guys.. i used a mixture of oak, maple ( i liked the curly pockets it forms) and another leaf that looks like oak but is much bigger then most oak leafs and its the one that has it. also this happened in the "transition box" they are in as i still was purchasing plants and supplys plus i read it is good to transition them into the new home, make sure they are eating/growing before unleasing them into bigger area. im going to order some springtails and/or others to help with "cleaning" but need to do a little more research. ide love to add some biolumenescent mushrooms to the whole set up but imagine it can be something a little more difficult to manage (ive grown oyster and shitakii from spore)


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## Keeferd (Mar 20, 2016)

I just nuke my leaves for 5 mins just to be sure, then let them soak in the steam for a bit. That mold actually looks pretty neat though. I would like to have some sort of cool fungal growth in my vivarium as long as it's safe.


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## PoisonArrow (Apr 8, 2016)

I second the Oak leaves as I have been using them for years without issues. Good luck with you terrarium.


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