AnotherHumanPerson Posted August 2, 2022 Share Posted August 2, 2022 In my 10 gallon guppy tank, I noticed that there were weird worm-like things on the glass. The photos may be a bit blurry due to my crappy iPhone camera. They look like tiny worms with a reddish-brown section in the middle of them with a tiny round “head”. Are these going to harm my fish and/or fry, or are they completely harmless ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Swarbrick Posted August 2, 2022 Share Posted August 2, 2022 It’s hard to tell from your photos does it look something like this? If so then it’s called planaria typically they eat on any leftover food in an aquarium. In generalI I don’t believe they are harmful but people have reported them to eat on shrimp, I haven’t ever seen it happen with my own eyes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anitstuk Posted August 2, 2022 Share Posted August 2, 2022 On 8/3/2022 at 8:58 AM, Adam.S said: It’s hard to tell from your photos does it look something like this? If so then it’s called planaria typically they eat on any leftover food in an aquarium. In generalI I don’t believe they are harmful but people have reported them to eat on shrimp, I haven’t ever seen it happen with my own eyes. I agree. I hear people say that fish will eat the planaria also so if you have some hungry fish in your tank, you shouldn't need to worry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nabokovfan87 Posted August 2, 2022 Share Posted August 2, 2022 Doesn't look like planaria to me. Try ti clean the glass, at night try to check for them again and get a better photo. Also, check if they are free floating and try to record a video of their movement. Here is the video and stuff I gathered on my worms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherHumanPerson Posted August 2, 2022 Author Share Posted August 2, 2022 On 8/2/2022 at 4:58 PM, Adam.S said: It’s hard to tell from your photos does it look something like this? If so then it’s called planaria typically they eat on any leftover food in an aquarium. In generalI I don’t believe they are harmful but people have reported them to eat on shrimp, I haven’t ever seen it happen with my own eyes. That is similar, but not quite right. They have more circular heads and the orange-ish part bulges out a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anitstuk Posted August 2, 2022 Share Posted August 2, 2022 I've had a second thought and it might be Detritus Worms. Try get a better photo so we could see the features. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nabokovfan87 Posted August 3, 2022 Share Posted August 3, 2022 On 8/2/2022 at 4:48 PM, AnotherHumanPerson said: That is similar, but not quite right. They have more circular heads and the orange-ish part bulges out a bit. There is one called rhabdocoela, but in terms of the color that points to a planarian type of worm. There are several different shapes and types. Let me see if I can find the article I was reading yesterday.https://rsscience.com/planarian/If it's a round shape, tube shape, it's probably detritus worms (do not take that as confirmation), but if it's flat shaped I would review the information above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon p Posted August 3, 2022 Share Posted August 3, 2022 I think detritus worm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherHumanPerson Posted August 3, 2022 Author Share Posted August 3, 2022 I haven’t been able to get any photos of them in a higher quality than the ones above, but I do believe they may be detritus worms, as I have seen several moving in and out of detritus patches next to the glass. They also do appear to be more tubular and they don’t resemble planaria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PotatoFish Posted August 3, 2022 Share Posted August 3, 2022 Planaria or detritus worms, my guppies nommed them just the same as hydras. I'm sure yours will as well. Admittedly, a part of me is a little irked watching detritus worms wriggle around the water. I just have to remind myself they're fish food, not fish parasites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotope Biologist Posted August 3, 2022 Share Posted August 3, 2022 Sounds to me like a Naidid worm of some sort. Pics are far too blurry for me to I.D, but based on the description... This is a family of worms that are often called detritus worms. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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