What is this?

[october004]

I was cleaning my tank today and noticed some small silvery ish worms floating in the water. They were flipping and flopping but I don't know where they came from or what they are. Any help would be appreciated.

[Barbie]

Those are usually a sign that there is too much uneaten food in the tank, either in the water column, or in the filter. They used to say they were planaria but now I think the common consensus is that they are a nematode. They aren't parasitic, but they ARE a sign of impending problems if you don't clean up the water conditions. Don't worry about trying to kill them. They'll just disappear when you get things cleaned up enough.

Barbie

[october004]

wow I am impressed but that brings more questions....I had 7 fish in the tank to cycle it but fed them very little. At least never more than they ate. I am running 2 30-60 filters in a 55 gallon tank with a nitrate and ammonia absorber plus a sponge filter. What am I doing wrong?

[Raul-7]

Are you sure they aren't Hydra: http://www1.gorpli.com:8080/hydra.jpg

[zebra046]

I got this problem too, because I only feed them once at night I tend to over feed and has a lot of left over, if you look closely in the glass near the surface of the water they are there too but if i start keeping tabs on my tank keep up with my water change I could lessen it very quickly.

I might think hydra would be a good thing for a tank with this type of infestation because they eat microscopic stuff it has been a very long time since I got hydra in my tanks, but if somebody would care to experiment on this I would like to know the results.

Good Luck

[october004]

well it doesn't look like a hydra?????

[Barbie]

It's VERY rare to actually have hydra in your tank, and they aren't free swimming. I'm not sure why you're seeing this problem, but it's definitely something you'll want to research a bit. Water test results can be helpful for us to help you diagnose issues .

Barbie