Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys i was wondering about some moss. Where my new house is there is plenty of moss all over the place because we are in the country/woods. I have seen a lot of moss even now after the snow has melted. It still looks like it is alive and well. I was thinking about taking some and putting it in the tank that I have my plants growing in. What do you think? I don't want a bunch of critters crawling in the tank or in the house but I am still interested in seeing what would happen with it. It seems to grow on the local rocks and fallen tree branches it is really pretty. It would be an experment. I still don't have the money to replace the tank that I lost so the building of the new tank hasn't even started yet. But I have been sucessful in keeping the plants alive and have even added a few. I don't want them to get damaged by any bug that might be in the moss. So let me know what you think . Thanks guys. Talk to you later

Temperate zone mosses don't seem to last long in tropical tanks in my experience. But it probably wouldn't harm anything to try it out. I don't personally worry about introducing insects and other small critters into a tank. Once the biological process of cycling with frogs present, their populations will be controlled rather well. I can even live with a few slugs and a little bit of leaf damage. The only stubborn problem I've ever had was scale insects on a bromeliad. But little soil mites, springtails, gnats, tiny millipedes, you might find on moss are more beneficial than destructive.

Here's one of the detritus-eating millpedes on some moss in one of the tanks.

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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

Dendrobates: auratus blue, auratus Ancon Hill, tinctorius azureus, leucomelas. Phyllobates: vittatus, terribilis, lugubris. Epipedobates: anthonyi tricolor pasaje. Ranitomeya fantastica, imitator, reticulata. Adelphobates castaneoticus, galactonotus. Oophagia pumilio Bastimentos. (updated systematic nomenclature)

Thank you Patty. I guess I will wait until I have my tank and the frogs and see what happens then. That way if I introduce critters to the tank the frogs can eat them so I won't have to worry about unwanted pests in the tank. All my plants are doing well and I have tons of new ideas for the new tank. Now it is being patient again and having money for the tank itself.