Planaria bloom

[valokayla]

So I've been having issues with an extreme bloom in planaria that I just can't seem to get rid of. I know that they are harmless, but there are soooo many of them in there.

*I do weekly water changes of about 20% once or twice a week.
*I have no substrate.
*I feed my axolotl outside of the tank in a plastic feeding tub.
*I clean up poop immediatly.

I've also noticed small baby snails. Of course when I do water changes I try to suck up as many snails and worms as I can.

I bought a live plant (java moss) the same time I bought the axolotl and 3 live moss balls and I'm 100% one of them is the source of the planaria and snails.

About a month ago I took the plants out and rinsed them. Last night I did a 90% water change and scrubbed everything and there are still thousands of these little worms.

I don't want to use any chemicals to get rid of them and they don't seem to be dying off on their own. Is there some kind of natural remedy to get rid of them? I've heard guppies will eat them but I know adding fish to an axolotl tank will most likely result in axololt lunch.

 

[Jennewt]

I'm surprised you have so much of a problem. This usually happens when there is leftover food, but it sounds like you've prevented this.

In addition to the partial water changes, it's OK to wipe the sides of the tank with a paper towel to get rid of some of them whenever you see a lot of them. Beyond that, I can't think of anything else you can do to control them.

 

[Holly12]

I'm stumped!! I had a bloom when I kept fish as there was a lot of plants mule, food and poop in the gravel, so there was a lot for them to eat......

I guess they can be in the filter too, so eradication by scrubbing wouldn't really work.

 

[tipnatee]

I remember that you feeding your axie back worms correct? If so I believe that's where they coming from, and they're known as the black worm leech cause they eat black worms . I'm not sure what's the scientific name actually is, maybe it's planaria. Of cause I could be wrong if so I apologize , but if I'm right it's harmless to axolotl also. Axolotl would eat them too it's just not easy to get to. If you want to kill them without harming the worms or axolotl cause like axolotl the black worms are very easy to kill with strong chemical. I've heard that methylene blue would kill them , methylene blue is just another very good anti fungus medication. I've never use it with my axolotl yet but I've heard many great things about it from another fellow amphibian lover. So I might look for some my self .

 

[Jennewt]

There are leeches in blackworms, but they are not the same as planaria. Leeches attach to the glass by one end of their body, with the rest of their body unattached. Planaria are like tiny little slugs, and sometimes have a slightly arrow-shaped head.

I've used lots of blackworms, and I do find leeches in tanks where there are lots of blackworms, but they don't go all over the place (they stay well hidden under the same rocks/ornaments where the blackworms hang out).

If you attempt any kind of medication to get rid of them, be very careful about water quality. A bunch of dead planaria could cause a spike in ammonia or bacteria in the tank.

 

[valokayla]

I've only ever fed him bloodworms (back in March-April), red wrigglers (April-August), and now I feed him nightcrawlers.

I'm pretty sure what I have in the tank is planaria. They are tiny, almost hair/fiber-like, white worms.

The best solution I could come up with was to remove the java moss because it seemed to be a nest for the worms. Since removing the plant I barely notice any worms. Hopefully it stays this way. Thanks for all the help though!

 

[Canecorsonewt]

Just remember one planaria can make over 1,000 planaria if you smash or cut them up. :angry: