Freshwater anemone?!

I was just observing my mystery snail with my nose mere inches from the glass when I noticed what looked like an anemone on its shell! It was tiny, with a pinkish stalk about 1mm long with 5 threadlike "arms" maybe 2mm long each. It shrank its arms in when the snail's movement brought the creature in contact with the glass but it came back out a few seconds later.

Is there such a thing as a freshwater anemone? I thought they were all saltwater!

 

Does it look like this?

http://applesnail.net/content/anatomy/respiration.php

 

Nope, definitely not a part of the snail. This thing was attached to the outside of the shell. Looked exactly like pictures I've seen of Hydra!

 

Sounds like a hydra to me.

 

I think you're right. Is it dangerous or bad in any way? I've read conflicting accounts online (of course) and though I think my betta is safe, I'm not so sure about my shrimp.

 

They will eat baby shrimp, but they won't harm the betta. The betta (not sure though, I know that gouramis [closely related] eat them) may eat the hydra.

 

Hydra. If you have a pair of tweezers i would remove it and any orhers before the spread

 

Last time I checked, the hydra had disappeared. I don't know if it found a more suitable home than the snail shell it was living on (and occasionally getting squished by as the snail moved around) or if the betta found it. Pity. I think I'd have enjoyed watching it some more, just like I enjoy the freshwater limpets and copepods I sometimes see. It's like having a grade 4 pond experiment again

 

I think plecos eat them. I had some hydra in my pea puffer tank, so I put my bn pleco in there.

For the last few days, I haven't seen any hydra.

Also, I've heard that fenbendazole kills them. It's like the Captain America of the fish medicines.

 

LOL! "Captain America of fish medicines". I don't have any plecos so I can guarantee they weren't responsible for the hydra's disappearance It was probably the betta. I only had the one that I could see though I'm sure there must be more. Maybe being squished did it in.

 

Ahh, but remember what they said? Cut off one head and two more will take its place.

Real-life hydra are like that too. Squishing doesn't kill it. New hydra can grow from the pieces squished on tank glass.

 

Oh. Lovely. Oh well, there's nothing in that tank, or any of my tanks really, that hydra can hurt. At least not things I put in the tanks. Maybe they're surviving on the copepods. I'm ok with them