Billions of flatworms

[paul b]

I was feeding the tank tonight and I said, Wow, the coraline algae is really taking off and growing like crazy. But it didn't look right. Wrong color and it seemed to be moving.

I took out my magnifying glasses and took a closer look.

I could not figure what they were until I poked one with a probe. The thing "ran" or slithered away pretty fast.

They are Acoel flatworms and they are completely covering portions of the rock. I never noticed them before and at first thought they were nudibranches but nudibranchs would never grow to these numbers in a tank.

There are thousands of these things.

Very cool. I love to find new things. I can't believe the amount of life in this old tank. There are these flatworms, amphipods, brittle stars, stomella, those little starfish (I forget their name) and almost as many tiny snails as these flatworms.

I don't know what all of these things are eating. It totally blows me away that all of this stuff is living in there.

I can look for hours with a set of magnifying glasses.

http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/5836

[gilmour01]

flatworms are probably feeding on the copepods. is this a new system?

[hypertech]

I think Paul might have the oldest system anywhere.

 

I think they might be self sustaining from light to a degree. At least, they respond to light. I had them in plague proportions in a tank once. If they get too bad, they will smother corals. Otherwise, they should go away on their own in time. Some wrasses are supposed to eat them, but I never had any luck long term with that.

[OUsnakebyte]

Yes, they will photosynthesize.

 

Wrasses in the genus Halichoeres will prey upon them. I am partial to H. melanurus - it is a striking fish in addition to its predator duties. A word of caution - they will likely attack ornamental crustaceans as well.

 

Cheers

Mike

[paul b]

flatworms are probably feeding on the copepods. is this a new system?

 

The tank will be 40 this March.

The worms feed on pods, when they eat enough pods they will disappear.

I find them interesting.

[gilmour01]

every time i've set up a new tank, i first notice a boom in copepods on the glass etc., followed by a boom of flatworms that munch on the copepods. thats why i ask about the age, but 40 is a little beyond new. You're right about them being interesting to watch...as long as they are not the type that likes to munch on corals.

[paul b]

No, they behave themselves. They don't eat the corals, I do

[thewire]

that tank is older than me! ...wow..would love to see some pictures!

[paul b]

It's just your standard everyday tank, with worms

 

Edited October 7, 2010 by paul b

[thewire]

It's just your standard everyday tank, with worms

 

 

 

nice...

 

Do you use RODI water back then?

[paul b]

Back then I used tap water like everyone else did. I did run it through a PVC pipe of carbon first.

This is what it looked like in 1972. It was all transfered into a 100 gallon tank a few years later.

 

Edited October 11, 2010 by paul b

[OldReefer]

I just had a bloom of these things as well. I have had big outbreaks of flatworms in other tanks that I treated with Salifert Flatworm Exit, but I think I'll just let these guys do thier thing for a while.

[GaryL]

Back then I used tap water like everyone else did. I did run it through a PVC pipe of carbon first.

This is what it looked like in 1972. It was all transfered into a 100 gallon tank a few years later.

 

 

something looks different about you.... new watch?

[paul b]

What do you mean? I look exactly the same.

[paul b]

OK I would like to change the name of this thread to billions of brittle stars. The flatworms seem to still be with me but not as many as before. Maybe only millions now :confused:

I am more impressed by the multitudes of brittle stars. I knew I had a lot but I had no idea I had this many.

I was target feeding my copperband butterfly and some clams went under a ledge of a rock. Immediately the area became a sea of arms. Then from a near by rock, more arms emerged until it looked like they were playing

"It's Raining Men" at a female spider convention.

There were arms all over the place. Or is it legs? Anyway, I was curious so I lifted some more rocks and they are all over the place. They were always in there, just not in those numbers.

Cute little suckers and like the flatworms, amphipods, tubeworms, Paris Hilton and everything else in there, they are welcome to stay as long as they like.