What in the world is this?

[justinl]

ahh well, such is the nature of the hobby. it's really your choice since so far no one knows what the hell it is. Personally I think a lot of people overestimate hitchhikers and kill a lot of harmless - even beneficial - organisms. I would just let it live and keep an eye on it, and for others like it.

as for not seeing it until today, I don't mean to suggest you don't pay attention to your tank, but things can pop up like that without you noticing; especially if your tank is large. Almost every time I look into my tank I notice something new. Just because you didn't see it until today, doesn't mean it wasn't there yesterday. again, one more beautiful characteristic of the hobby.