worms in the tank

[volley]

Hi all,

Need some advice from the experts here. I found little worms in the black quartz gravel in my 1.5 ft tank with plants like nana, narrow java fern and crypt. Don't know how they get there but the fishes (mini cory and endlers) and the shrimps (CRS, orange shrimps and cherry shrimps and yamatos) are all not interested in them. These worms are tiny, around 2 to 4mm long and its white in colour. Does anyone come across these and what can be done to eliminate them?

Thanks in advance.

Volley

[Wilfred]

Sound like Planaria, my tank have them too, quite small.. After my filter spoil for a few day, they just came out from no where(a lot), i did some research on the net. found out they are harmless.. after install a new filter and start running for a day or so, almost all gone, BUT look carefully they still there lol (leave a bit is all i can say).. just don't over feed your fishes and do some water change will do. Save you some time to searching " The Real Problem Even though Planaria do not harm fish, they are an indicator that the aquarium has a problem. They require a food source, which means there must be excess food wastes in the tank to support them. If you have Planaria it's time to give your aquarium a thorough cleaning. Pay particular attention to the substrate, as that's usually where they find their food. Make sure there are no dead plants, or other wastes in the tank. You should also take a hard look at how much you are feeding your fish. Usually the excess waste the Planaria are living on is the result of overfeeding your fish. Reduce the amount you feed your fish, as well as the frequency of feedings. Finally, once you've cleaned things up, be sure to continue with regular maintenance and water changes. A clean tank is the best defense against becoming overrun with Planaria. "

[stormhawk]

If they are flat and have 2 tiny eyes, then they are flatworms. To remove them, you either trap them, or use an anti-helminthic like fenbendazole or flubendazole. Look for those dog/bird de-worming medication. Should contain a quantity of the drug you require. Note that there can be risks using these drugs. So use at your own risk.

If they are skinny and look like miniature tubifex worms, they are oligochaete worms, or some other nematode. Just vacuum your gravel and cut down on feeding. They usually thrive in substrates with a lot of organic crap, especially in tanks where you heavily feed the fish.

Another medication you might want to consider, for removing tiny white worms is VermeX. See this link:

http://www.reinbiotech.com/vermex/vermex.jsp

I do not know how efficient this medication is though, but it is still an option to consider.

[volley]

Thanks wilfred and stormhawk for your advice. Will try to monitor and wash the gravel.

[Wilfred]

You are welcome and have a merry Christmas everyone. Oh oh oh..

[volley]

I'm still having this worms in the tank and its multiplying. I don't think I've been overfeeding as I only feed my fishes and shrimps once a day and a little at a time to ensure that all the food are eaten before adding some more. Why aren't the fishes and the shrimps eating the worms? Is there any fish that will help to get rid of them?

[Fuzzy]

Most likely not, I think your best bet is to try trapping them. Shrimp are usually more sensitive to medication / chemical treatments.

[stormhawk]

Most fish and shrimp will not go for these worms. Your option is to either trap, or kill them using the medications I spoke about. Those tiny white worms are not that easy to trap as compared to flatworms.

[volley]

The white worms shown in the vermex website looks a little transparent but the ones I found in my tank is more milky white. And after looking at photos from some websites, it seems to me its more like planaria as what bro wilfred has mentioned.

[Wilfred]

My is under control, clean your glass once in a few day should be fine plus the weekly cleaning, don't over feed, no problem, but found green hydra in my tank, hydra hunting tonight

[stormhawk]

If the worms have a "diamond-shaped" head, more like a triangular but pointed head, then you want flatworms. Vermex can wipe them out, but if you are afraid that the medication might kill your other fishes and shrimps in the tank, trap them. There's a thread on how to trap Planaria in another subforum.

[volley]

I've managed to trap some. Seems like its my only choice before deciding on using medication as I've just found out that there are some CRS shrimplets in there. Thanks for all your advice.

[felix_fx2]

Hi volley,

Refer the link bellow.
Bugs you might encounter in your aquarium - AquaticQuotient.com
http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum...ad.php?t=34333

Wish you luck against hydra and Planaria.
I had a attack in the past, it was due to my overfeeding.

[volley]

Thanks for your link felix fx2. I've been trying to trap them the last 2 days. Quite successful but i guess it will be a long fight. I've also stop feeding the fishes but just worried that the fishes and shrimps might not be able to wait till the "war" is over. :-)

[Wilfred]

Volley, you might want to try this, feeding them onces every 2 or 3 day, and each time feed them normally (just don't OVERfeed them will do, they need to finish they food with-in 1~3min shrimp food with-in 2 hour make sure they still will get some food during your "war" )

My have greatly reduce or just have setter down already...

[volley]

Actually I'm the kind that only feed once a day and feed very little but just somehow can't understand why this occurs. Nevetheless, I'll do as suggested. Thanks again.

[stormhawk]

What you require right now is not just trapping them, but also doing some gravel vacuuming. Reducing the detritus trapped in the gravel is also key to defeating these pests, along with trapping them. You can feed the fish and shrimp, but make sure they eat everything like what Wilfred mentioned.

[volley]

Will do that. Just that mine is only a 1.5ft tank, can only vacuum small area at a time because the water gets drained out fast and I do not want to change the perimeters of the water too much so I'm trying ont to change more than 30% each time.