# Tiny Insect ID



## Darks!de (Nov 16, 2004)

Found these things in my tank a few days ago...haven't added any new plants for a few weeks and the tank has been setup for about 3 months. They seem to only be on this one plant (not sure what it is, randomly sprouted).



The plant only has two leaves at the moment and they seem to be growing pretty well, but a few days after these bugs showed up, the younger leaf has developed this:


I'm not sure if it is caused by the insects, because I have not seen them eating the plant at all. Any ideas?

Luke


----------



## Auhsoj27 (Jun 3, 2005)

I'm always suspicious of plants that seem to show up out of the blue. Although I don't recall a total eclipse of the sun any time recently, I would still avoid dripping any blood near this new tank resident.


----------



## OneSmallFrog (Apr 27, 2005)

The bugs look like thrips to me. I've got a few on my orchids, and they're a pain in the butt. The damage to your leaf looks more like some sort of bacterial or fungal rot, though, not what the thrips do to my orchids. But it's possible that the thrip damage opened the door to the rot.

What I'd do is wipe off the leaves with a paper towel wetted with rubbing alcohol to get rid of the bugs. Repeat every few days for a while. For the damaged leaf, cut out the damaged part with a sharp knife or razor blade, then touch the cut edges with a Q-tip dipped in cinnamon. 

Bev


----------



## Darks!de (Nov 16, 2004)

Well whatever they are, the don't move too much. I barely ever see them twitch, not to mention walk around. Even when I tap the leave they remain still. 

In addition to these guys, I also found another insect on my ghost wood. Not sure if it is the same as the other post "I'm feeling itchy" or not. They are greenish-brown and the size of an adult springtail. They jump pretty far when I try to catch them and have 2 antennae and have segmented-looking bodies. The thorax also gets fatter as you move from the head towards the end...any ideas?

Luke


----------

