bigspizz;1075111; said:
thanks.........check out the fine fuzz/hair i think it is used for locomotion there is a name for it something like flageletes ( ????)
help id this bug please
- Thread starter johnptc
- Start date
thanks.........check out the fine fuzz/hair i think it is used for locomotion there is a name for it something like flageletes ( ????)
That appears indeed, to be one of the many oligocheata, A group that includes bristle worms, earthworms, and other annelids. They are detritus eaters and since they are in your filter pads they are probably feeding on dead bacteria and partly broken down food and fish waste. I don't know of any freshwater ones that are harmful. They actually make pretty good snacks for molly sized fish. To get rid of themyou will need to rinse out your pads, and clean your filters a couple times until they stop reappearing. This does have the down side of damaging the benificial bacteria though. If you have a communnity tank of 2-3" fish like mollies, gouramis, etc., you could just set the pads in there one at a time and let the fish pick them off. Here is a pick of a different species in the same order, I think this one is an ahterix sp.
maybe the clown loaches would like them ??
Aquatic worms (Phylum Annelida and others)
Key features:
- no legs- may be smooth or bristly- may be round or flat- size range: 1/4" - 5"
Many aquatic worms look similar to earthworms. In streams, you may also find very long, slender worms (such as horsehair worms), or flatworms, like planaria, which are small, sticky and soft-bodied (contrast with the muscular leech--see below). Many of these can slip through the seine quite easily, so watch closely. If you locate a worm and it is not a midge larva, crane fly larva, leech, or black fly larva, (see descriptions below and on previous page) it should be recorded under the category of "aquatic worms." These worms will typically "wriggle" in a snake-like fashion. Colors vary greatly in this category (red, white, brown are common). Note: Worms do not have legs. If it looks like a worm, but has six legs (they may be small) it is not an aquatic worm -- check the other descriptions to correctly identify the organism. UP
also of interest http://people.virginia.edu/~sos-iwla/Stream-Study/Key/MacroKeyIntro.HTML
Aquatic worms (Phylum Annelida and others)
Key features:
- no legs- may be smooth or bristly- may be round or flat- size range: 1/4" - 5"
Many aquatic worms look similar to earthworms. In streams, you may also find very long, slender worms (such as horsehair worms), or flatworms, like planaria, which are small, sticky and soft-bodied (contrast with the muscular leech--see below). Many of these can slip through the seine quite easily, so watch closely. If you locate a worm and it is not a midge larva, crane fly larva, leech, or black fly larva, (see descriptions below and on previous page) it should be recorded under the category of "aquatic worms." These worms will typically "wriggle" in a snake-like fashion. Colors vary greatly in this category (red, white, brown are common). Note: Worms do not have legs. If it looks like a worm, but has six legs (they may be small) it is not an aquatic worm -- check the other descriptions to correctly identify the organism. UP
also of interest http://people.virginia.edu/~sos-iwla/Stream-Study/Key/MacroKeyIntro.HTML
99% sure these are black fly larvae. There are 50 species in N. America so, pinning down the exact species of Simulium sp. will require an entomologist. Adult females feed on blood and have a nasty bite. Males drink nectar. The larvae make good snacks for your fish and only feed on detritus, bacteria, and diatoms. Here are a couple of pics:
Oddball;1077693; said:
Sorry Oddball, Not cranefly larvae (terrestrial, fat, and grublike), nor blackfly larvae (those have a holdfast pad at one end and 2 fan like gills at the other. The FW bristle worm relatives have no hold fast and 2-4 soft, antenna-like prrojections at the mouth end) these are visible in his picture.
