white dots jumping on surface of my tank

Question
QUESTION: i have small (point of a needle small) white dots which jump on the surface of my 56 gallon (3months old) tank. I have a new filter (bio wheel) Marineland power filter emperor 280 which I don't really like. The tank has tetras, gouramis, barbs (all community fish# red tail shark pleco and catfish and some glass shrimp #about 35 fish#. I can't tell if the dots are living things or something weird. The gravel, plants #all live - no plastic) etc. were moved over from my 30 gallon tank of 10 years.

ANSWER: Henry,

 They could be tiny bubbles coming to the surface. What kind of filter media are you using? Are you using any filter floss in them.
Sometimes the filter will start to throw out small pieces into the water. It could also be planaria worms. They live in your filters. They are not bad. I sometimes get them in my fry tank and the fry love them. I a good source of fish food. If you are bothered by them, you can do a water change, and skim the top of the water. I am hoping you do weekly water changes anyway. You can also try using your net to skim the water. I would use a brine shrimp net that way you can get them and not lose them through the holes. Hope this helps.

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QUESTION: They pass thru my brine shrimp net - they jump about 3 - 4 inches at a time. Not too many of them. The filter media I use is the marineland rite size E cartridge. They definitely r not bubbles

Answer
Henry,

 I am thinking that they are planaria worms. Maybe try skimming the surface of your tank with a coffee filter. I have found they come in very handy with my live food. I also think that your fish will most likely take care of them. They should not bother the tank or the filter or your water perimeters. You won't see them all the time, but they live in your filter. If you don't want your fish to get them, then i would definitely try getting them out with coffee filters. I always double them when I am harvesting my vinegar eels and it seems to work out pretty good.