Necturus parasites

I just went downstairs to check on my newts, and Walkies, my Necturus Maculosus, was out from her rock and near the glass. I got a good look at her and noticed a small white worm on her abdomen. It was about a 1-2 mms long, white, and thin. It didn't appear to be attached and was crawling on its skin. On closer look, I noticed two more near her back leg.

Does anyone know what these are? She was wild caught about a month or two ago, and has been doing fairly well. I know in this part of the state there is a salamander mussel that uses Necturus as hosts, but I don't know what the larva look like. Also, are these parasites going to be harmful to her, and if so, is there a way to remove them? I'm worried that taking her out of or partially out of the water and handling her will cause damage and just be generally difficult in general. And if it is a salamander mussel larva, is there anywhere I can go to find info on these, they're a state endangered species and I'd prefer not to kill them if possible.

Thanks.

Hi Peter, sounds just like some of the flatworm parasites that specialize on Eurycea here in Missouri. They don't really harm the animals that I've ever noticed, just appear to feed on mucous/skin especially near the gills and base of legs. I always just pick them off with a fine pair of tweezers. Put her in a smaller, shallower tub of water and pick them off.

Mussel larvae (glochidia) do not look like worms at all. They look like tiny mussels attached to the gills.

Thanks for the advice, I'll try that.