Help! Odd Worm! Please Id!

[CBBP]

http/media.putfile.com/Strange-Worm

These thigns have been popping up here and there.. they mainly seem to come out at night.. so far I have not seen one attack/stalk a fish but it is just a blind worm.. anyway.. goldfish do not eat them and cories or SAEs will not go after them.. so i mainly jsut net them and flush them..

what are they? is it a bad worm or a nothign harmful worm?

as you can see they are pretty big.

 

[Xebadir]

Looks like some species of flatworm: Like a leech. You need to get rid of these I have a feeling they could damage your fish.

 

[CBBP]

mm.. I have been told it is a leech indeed.. how would i go about getting ride of leeches?

 

[Wonderboy]

Not gonna lie - that's the most bizaar aquarium pest that I've seen yet. I'd manually remove them. Then try treating the water.... Does anyone think salt will fend off these things??? Or another chemical??

 

[Tetras]

I found this, maybe it can be helpfull.


Leeches
These external parasites are visible on the skin, gills and fins of the fish and are similar in appearance to Ick.
Since they attach themselves to the fish, the best method of removal is a bath in a salt solution for 20 minutes (dosage 2.5 % salt to water). During the bath, most of the leeches will simply fall off; the ones remaining can be removed with a pair of tweezers.

Copper sulfate has been used to successfully remove and control less harmful worms. Over time, copper has been found to do more damage than good concerning the overall balance of the aquarium. The side effects of copper are rarely in relation with the possible benefits.

How to build a worm trap
Next to commercially available worm traps, it is fairly easy to make one at home. All that is needed is a plastic container or jar with a lid.
Using a razor blade or sharp knife, the lid is cut in X shape. The corners are then pushed slightly inward to form an opening in the lid. The size of the opening varies, depending on the size of the creatures to be trapped.

For the trap to work properly it is important that the worms do not see the "bait" but rather smell it. The container should therefore not be transparent.

For bait, clam and shrimp meat can be used as well as any fish meat available. The bait should be prepared in a way that is small enough for the worms but just short of being mashed up totally.

The container is then placed in the area where the worms are suspected and kept there over night. Adjustments to the size of the lid opening and the bait source can be made for optimum results.

Edit: I have read that turning the tank water slighly brackish, will eliminate the leech problem, how that would work with your fish I don't know though. Leeches can supposedly come from feeding live foods, plants and intro of new fish (think you would see it on the fish though), so I will now have starring competion with my tank, making sure I don't have them, pretty horrid-looking thing. Almost makes planeria look cute compared to this!!!

 

[black angel]

I found one of those on my pond plants, deffinately a leech. Hopefully theres just the one, so catch it and get rid.

 

[mantis147]

It does look like a leech!!

 

[CBBP]

haha thanks Tetras.. I was jsut contemplating a worm trap.. I mean I have only ever seen 3 of these.. once in the goldfish tank.. beign chased by all 6 goldfish (thoguh they never took a bite from it) one in my goldfish filter.. and one swimmign around the plants (the one in that video) I am going to try the trap to get a feel for how many are actually in the tank..

 

[CBBP]

Not gonna lie - that's the most bizaar aquarium pest that I've seen yet. I'd manually remove them. Then try treating the water.... Does anyone think salt will fend off these things??? Or another chemical??

yeah.. when I first saw one I was like.. umm.. I better get that out.. a worm that big probably does not eat small things.. thoguh 1 leech sighting every few months is nto that bad but still bad.

 

[WILDER]

I agree its a leech and very nasty things.

 

[CBBP]

I agree its a leech and very nasty things.

did you have them before?

 

[WILDER]

Heard about tthem that they can completely suck a fish blood away thats why there so nasty.

 

[CBBP]

Heard about tthem that they can completely suck a fish blood away thats why there so nasty.

I hope that I just can't see all my cories and that none where vampire killed.. anyway.. I put the trap in.. I will see if anythign is in i tomorrow.. and a few days after.. if not.. I guess I don;t have too many of them..

 

[WILDER]

Do a search so you know what you are dealing with, good luck.

 

[CBBP]

Heard about tthem that they can completely suck a fish blood away thats why there so nasty.

I hope that I just can't see all my cories and that none where vampire killed.. anyway.. I put the trap in.. I will see if anythign is in i tomorrow.. and a few days after.. if not.. I guess I don;t have too many of them..