i have found bugs in my tropical tank what are they?

Question

last week i was just sat looking at the tank when i saw what can only be described as aminature dragonfly at the top of my filter and this week i have just seen a larval dragonfly in my little 30 litre tank is it a dragonfly and hows did i get em and how do i get rid?

Answer 1

If the first minature dragonfly was around 2-3 inches or larger, it could have laid eggs in your filter, and that's how you got the larva.

Since you called it a miniature, it might have been a damselfly, rather than a dragonfly. They look similar, but when the dragonfly lands, the wings are held outward from the body. A damselfly hold them folded above its back. Damsels also tend to be more brightly colored than dragonflies. Here's a page of a google picture search for adult damselflies: http://www.goldfishconnection.com/articles/details.php?articleId=145&parentId=12 and a picture of larvae/nymphs: http://www.life.uiuc.edu/ib/109/Insect%20rearing/photos/damselfly.jpg - note how the three projections on the tail are long and flat.

Photos of adult dragonflies: http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?p=dragonfly&fr=yfp-t-501&toggle=1&cop=mss&ei=UTF-8 (two photos are of damsels, mistakenly labeled - note the wings!) and of dragonfly larva: http://www.thomasames.com/insects/other/dragonym.jpg - note the projections are more like spines.

Neither the adults or larvae will hurt you, or your fish unless they're fry. If your fish are large enough, they may eat the bugs! If you don't want them, just remove them from the tank when you see them. Otherwise, when any that survive being a meal emerge as adults, they'll fly away on their own.

Answer 2

There ok the fish will eat them, Im not to sure how there caused but there good for the fish to eat,

Answer 3

Not really sure how it got in, but you should do a really good 30% water change so that way it will not hurt or even kill your fish.

Answer 4

If you keep your tank in a garden shed..it would be gnat larvae.