Leeches??

[supermatelot]

I have just placed a block of frozen daphnia in my tank and I watched what appeared to be a very thin 1cm long leech or worm emerge from my gravel,I immeidiatly gravel vacc'd the thing out.Does anybody know what it was/is it anything to worry about?
Thanks

 

[Essayons89]

I doubt that they are leeches. What did the worms look like? Were they a white or grayish color in appearance?

My guess, without more info, is that they are planaria. You will usually seem as a result of overfeeding or through the feeding of live foods. They are harmless. Cutting back on the amount of food that they can get and doing thorough gravel vacs will eventually cause them to disappear.

Bryan

 

[supermatelot]

leech thing

It was red in colour,looked just like a small blood worm,1cm long,contracting and expanding etc.

 

[krap101]

might be a bloodworm? i found them in my lil net i use to feed my fish from the daphnia bucket.

 

[supermatelot]

bloodworm

I have only ever fed frozen bloodworm though.

 

[krap101]

oh.... thats true. was it wormy or sluggy

 

[Fruitbat]

If it was expanding and contracting then there is a very good chance that it actually was a leech. Generally planaria scoot along the substrate or glass with a relatively fluid motion. Leeches, on the other hand, typicall expand and contract their bodies and can actually swim that way. I'd keep an eye on your fish for any unexplained injuries and give your gravel a thorough vacuuming.

Keep us informed!

 

[supermatelot]

Its definately leeches!
I just done another w/c and there was yet another red thing holding on to the inside of my syphon tube by one end,when i removed it,it sort of turned into a small red slimy blob the started moving again.
How can I get rid of these things?None of my fish appear ill or have anything hanging off them.