Little swiggle worms all in my substrate

[sambenoit]

Their are little white swigglly worms that move like a snake! They are very small and really hard to see. They were in the substrate. Also about 8months earlier i had a disease in one tank with a slim on their eyes i lost many fish. about two months ago i notice little worm in that tank but also in two more tanks i have. Can you help tell me what this is?

 

[Lily]

It's probably planaria worms, they usually show up if there is a lot of uneaten food in the substrate. They're harmless to fish so don't worry too much, just make sure you don't over-feed your fish and regularly vacuum your substrate and they will go away.

 

[Madding]

Agree with Lily, sounds like planaria. Do water changes and feed less until they go away. They are harmless to your fish and tank.

 

[sambenoit]

can they kill me?

 

[krichardson]

Probably if you manage to eat a ton of them lol....Not meaning to come off preachy or anything but the things you have mentioned sounds like you could use better filtration and/or water change schedule.

 

[Madding]

can they kill me?

Um....

 

[Pyramid_Party]

I don't think they are planaria it doesn't sound like them. It is a nematode that lives in the substrate that breaks down waste. It is harmless, they are actually beneficial. Fish will eat them and they break down wastes win-win situation. Also the fact they are there does not necessarily mean your tank is overfed or has poor maintenance. They are common in lots of tanks.

 

[krichardson]

Well,if the fish are small enough they will eat them but bigger fish ignore them and out of the few tanks that I have running,the one that has the least amount of filtration but has about four dats growing out is the one that has those worms present.They have never been seen in my other tanks...The poster mentioning losing fish to disease and cloudy eye is what prompted my comments about maintenence and filtration.