White String From Mollies Mouth

Does anybody know what this is?? Just spoted this thing on its mouth

 

It almost looks like detritus....

Is it stuck there or does he appear to just be trying to eat it?

 

Is it stuck there or does he appear to just be trying to eat it?

It is there for quiet some time and she seems to be trying to eat it continously but it is still the same length

 

Hmm have you tried to move it? Some fish will eat or try to eat detritus...

In the one picture (could just be the picture) but it looks like there is lots of them floating around? Have you done a water change lately?

 

Hmm have you tried to move it? Some fish will eat or try to eat detritus...

I was not sure what it was so I left it.. can I just pull that white string with tweezers?

 

Am I right though? Is there a bunch of them floating around like what I can see in the pictures... if there are it is detritus and your tank needs to be cleaned... ya you can try but don’t pull too too hard... if it’s detritus it should just come out... not trying to offend you but do you know what detritus is?

 

Am I right though? Is there a bunch of them floating around like what I can see in the pictures... if there are it is detritus and your tank needs to be cleaned... ya you can try but don’t pull too too hard... if it’s detritus it should just come out... not trying to offend you but do you know what detritus is?

Those are bubbles from my filter..gets elongated in photos..
About detritus.. I searched online when u told it and found it to be some kind of waste..(correct me if I am wrong)..

 

Yes that’s exactly what it is... so I would try to gently move it... like I said some fish eat the detritus... some actually are meant to eat it... but a good water change and substrate cleaning will get rid of any of it that’s there... but if it appears to be stuck or something really badly it could be some type of worm or parasite

 

Yes that’s exactly what it is... so I would try to gently move it... like I said some fish eat the detritus... some actually are meant to eat it... but a good water change and substrate cleaning will get rid of any of it that’s there... but if it appears to be stuck or something really badly it could be some type of worm or parasite

I have half my tank sand and the rest is white stone and I planted the entire sand area so I can't actually clean the sand part.. I usually vacuum the stones .. and can u tell me how to carefully remove it from her mouth..

 

You can absolutely clean sand substrate... you need to rake it over a couple times and then siphon up the stuff that comes up... if you have a python by chance all you do is remove the long tube part and hover the rest of the line OVER the sand... not in or right on it... and it will suck everything up... that’s how I clean my sand... I would try the tweezers but just be very careful you don’t want to pull to hard if it is some type of worm... if it doesn’t come out I would put her in a QT tank if you have one and treat for parasites/worms

 

You can absolutely clean sand substrate... you need to rake it over a couple times and then siphon up the stuff that comes up... if you have a python by chance all you do is remove the long tube part and hover the rest of the line OVER the sand... not in or right on it... and it will suck everything up... that’s how I clean my sand... I would try the tweezers but just be very careful you don’t want to pull to hard if it is some type of worm... if it doesn’t come out I would put her in a QT tank if you have one and treat for parasites/worms

I just noticed it is getting smaller in length.. now its just about 5 millimetres out of its mouth

 

Are there any live plants in the tank or have you added any fish/water from the shop where there might be a loose plant root that ended up in your water? My first thought was a root, I've seen fish get try to eat them before and it looked much the same. I don't think it will hurt if it's a plant root, she'll eventually suck it all the way in even if it takes a couple days, that is if it's now too short to remove.

 

Are there any live plants in the tank or have you added any fish/water from the shop where there might be a loose plant root that ended up in your water? My first thought was a root, I've seen fish get try to eat them before and it looked much the same. I don't think it will hurt if it's a plant root, she'll eventually suck it all the way in even if it takes a couple days, that is if it's now too short to remove.

It is getting shorter.. I do have a plant which has roots that are outside.. I bought those from a store where he had too much substrate like 4 to 5 inches.. and this was planted in it so it has roots 2-3 inches from bottom of stem and I have only 1-1.5 inch sand.. could it be this root?? I didnt even think they will eat roots

 

Mollies will eat just about anything that holds still long enough.

 

Mollies will eat just about anything that holds still long enough.

I hope its just a root.. and nothing else..

 

When it was big did you try and remove it? And you can always trim the roots of plants... you just have to cut them properly

 

When it was big did you try and remove it? And you can always trim the roots of plants... you just have to cut them properly

No I was going to do that but by then it seems she ate most of it.. now it is getting smaller

 

Ya I wouldn’t worry too much but always try to check your tank for stuff like that... that’s why cleaning it up is important.. like I said you can and should clean your sand substrate... once you give it a good raking you will see lots of stuff probably come up to the surface... you have to do it gentle enough not up totally cloud up your tank but well enough that you are getting to the bottom and upturning it... a python is an amazing cleaning tool for water changes... once you have one it will change your life... especially if you have a decent size tank

 

Thanks everyone for your time.. I am new to fish keeping and seeing something stick out of her mouth worried me...
I will clean the sand and decoration tomorrow and trim the extra roots...
Thanks guys..

 

I wouldn’t clean the decorations... they can hold bacteria and are probably fine... you don’t want to do everything at once... I would rake the sand and then do a water change... that’s it... and by doing the water change you will get rid of most of the floating particles and such

 

I wouldn’t clean the decorations... they can hold bacteria and are probably fine... you don’t want to do everything at once... I would rake the sand and then do a water change... that’s it... and by doing the water change you will get rid of most of the floating particles and such

Ok I will take care of that..

 

I wouldn't worry too much about the roots or other floating plant debris, maybe with some other types of fish but mollies are herbivores/omnivores, they eat a lot of plant matter anyway.
Cleaning sand regularly is required though, otherwise it can go stagnant as water doesn't flow through it easily like it does with larger pebbles.