Worms In The Aquarium

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• Kasshan
• Mar 13, 2018

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• Kasshan
• Mar 13, 2018

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• Kasshan
• Mar 13, 2018

found this worm in my tank.
reddish brown,
variable length and is a shapeshifter;
- extended length is 2 inches, flat, thin, can be free swimming and in a serpentine motion
-contracted length is 1/2 inches, round, stubby, anchors posterior and moves by extending itself feeling its environment then anchoring the anterior.
-It can also decide to slither if it wants to squeeze in between rocks

anyone else have worms like that ever in their aquarium? I'm fairly certain I already know what it is, but I want to hear other people's feedback first.

 

Sounds like a leech.

 

bingo. that is what I also concluded. they seem rather harmless; had them for a few months, but either the fish eat them or they hide mostly. never had any fish attacked, since ive never seen any lesions. perhaps because the leeches are well fed from other easier food sources?

 

I get leeches with shipments of california blackworms; fish seem to eat them, never seen one eating a fish.

 

same here, they hitchhike in my blackworm batches as well; I get planaria too but they don't last long in the aquarium. I usually catch the big leeches from my lightly stocked breeding/planted tanks and try to feed them to my Jack Dempseys, but they never get a chance to chase em down because the blackskirt tetras and mollies get them first.

I think leeches get a bad rap, much like bats, only a few species actually are parasitic. and my these leeches have access to easier food sources.

 

lol well I found out what leech eggs look like now. brown ovals that 4mm long and 2mm wide stuck to a flat surface. despite feeding all my tanks the same diet, only one tank seems to be infested. I guess my blue rams don't care to hunt them and would have an easier meal from a California blackworm instead.