Strange growth in fish tank

[Stormcloudferret]

Hello! This is my first time posting here. I couldn’t find enough evidence on this topic elsewhere so I’m not sure where to post on the forum.

I am a minor who has a five gallon fish tank that, at the moment, only has a African Dwarf Frog and a Ghost Shrimp in it. I did a 50% water change before leaving on a trip for 5 days and came back to a strange, small, clear “sac” sort of thing containing white little dots. I’m almost certain that they are not eggs. In the recent past I had a betta fish in the tank a few months ago, and a while before that, a second ghost shrimp. (Both passed away). I unfortunately cannot find a picture that matches the growth in my tank. Could you guys please help me out here? All feedback is accepted!

[Brandy]

Sorry, they are snail eggs. In the morning I will try to get a good pic of some, I have lots of examples, but they are exactly what you describe.

[bellion]

It would be nice if you can take some pictures of the clear sacs but it sounds like pest snail eggs for me

[Marnol D]

If its a clear sac with 5-20 little white specs in it and its flat and can be brushed off the glass or plant its attached to I have to go with the others and say its snail eggs. A few snails (like ramshorns) can reproduce by themselves or with a mate and you may not ever know you have one as it could hide all day.  Now its rare and ive only ever heard of it but some people have had fresh water sponges (like a sea sponge) sprout in their tanks but those arent flat nor do they have spots in them. How clear is clear it could be a Freshwater bryozoans colony but they are usually a brownish color. 

[Stormcloudferret]

A few things I forgot to add:

the tank has a heater and a filter, and a live Amazon sword plant. I took out the decoration they are clinging to and upon further inspection the dots inside are a light brown, and the sacs seemed to “deflate” once I took them out of the water. Also, if this helps, i haven’t ever owned snails and neither has anyone in my household. I’ll try to get some pictures 

[Marnol D]

@Stormcloudferret How long has the plant been in the tank and where did it come from?

[Stormcloudferret]

I bought it from the aquarium co-op in Edmonds, Washington. I have had it for about 9 months or so

[Brandy]

pics of snail eggs.

[Stormcloudferret]

Those are pretty similar, although the sacs that holds the dots are a bit bigger, the biggest one being about the size of a fingernail. They also were quite a bit rounder and were separate sacs. I can’t get a picture of what they looked like originally because when I took the decoration they are clinging to I didn’t take into account that they would likely dry out. Here’s a photo of them now, the clear sac around them is completely dried out.

Edited November 30, 2020 by Stormcloudferret

[FriendlyLoach]

Yeah, snail eggs.