Paul B. is a crackpot and doesn't know a black worm from a platypus

[sachabballi reef]

Lol, every once in a while you find an adult mixed in with them.

 

and that day would be the fishies last black worm meal. EVER.

[YHSublime]

 

and that day would be the fishies last black worm meal. EVER.

 

Lolz

 

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[paul b]

Worms are worms and leeches are leeches. Worms grow up to be bigger worms.

[surf&turf]

Lumbriculus is found throughout North America and Europe. It prefers shallow habitats at the edges of ponds, lakes, or marshes where it feeds on decaying vegetation and microorganisms. Favorite microhabitats include layers of decomposing leaves, submerged rotting logs, or sediments at the base of emergent vegetation, such as cattails. Lumbriculus may also occupy silty sediments from deeper water, but other oligochaetes such as tubificids (tubifex worms) are more common in these habitats.

 

In nature, Lumbriculus uses its head to forage in sediments and debris, while its tail end, specialized for gas exchange, often projects upwards. When possible, the worm stretches its tail vertically to the water surface where it forms a right angle bend and breaks the water surface tension. This posture facilitates gas exchange between the air and the pulsating dorsal blood vessel lying just beneath the epidermis. This respiratory behavior markedly contrasts with that of tubificid worms, which often undulate their tail ends as they protrude from burrows in sediments well below the water surface.

 

Field-collected Lumbriculus are often larger than laboratory-reared worms. Maximal body size is about 10 cm in length (approximately 200-250 segments) and 1.5 mm in diameter. Such specimens appear as sexually mature hermaphrodites. Although never documented, sexual reproduction in mature worms probably involves copulation and sperm exchange, as seen in many earthworms. Then, worms produce transparent cocoons, each containing 4-11 fertilized eggs that undergo direct embryonic development with no larval stage (Drewes and Brinkhurst, 1990). Small worms, about 1 cm in length, emerge from cocoons in about two weeks.

 

Worms cultured under standard laboratory conditions are usually small (4-6 cm in length) compared to field-collected ones, and never reach sexual maturity or produce cocoons. Reproduction under laboratory conditions is always by asexual fragmentation, during which a worm spontaneously divides into two or more body fragments.

 

Each surviving fragment then undergoes rapid regeneration of body segments to form a new head end, tail end, or both ends. Eventually each fragment grows into a normal sized worm comprising a combination of older and newer segments, representing two or more generations of development.

 

The capacity for asexual reproduction by fragmentation is matched by the ability to self-amputate in response to injury or other types of noxious stimulation. This protective reflex response is referred to as autotomy. One stimulus which causes worms to readily autotomize is body compression (Lesiuk and Drewes, 1999a). A sudden compression stimulus, which presumably simulates a predatory attack, induces rapid and clean division of the body in less than 1/5 of a second.

 

You are right Paul, sorry for the miss information Jenn

[sachabballi reef]

Surf & turf is a crackpot and doesn't know a black worm from a platypus lol

 

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Edited May 13, 2013 by sachabballi reef

[surf&turf]

Surf & turf is a crackpot and doesn't know a black worm from a platypus lol

 

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[YHSublime]

Surf & turf is a crackpot and doesn't know a black worm from a platypus lol

 

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+1 :clap:

[surf&turf]

+1 :clap:

 

Come on, no piling on, but I have found leaches mixed in with mine.

[paul b]

Come on, no piling on, but I have found leaches mixed in with mine.

Leaches do sometimes come mixed in with the worms, but I would imagine they are just as nutritious as the worms, maybe even more so and the fish don't seem to care as they eat them also. The freshwater leaches will die in the saltwater almost as fast as the blackworms do so there is no chance of them leeching on to a fish and causing any damage.

[sachabballi reef]

Creepy stuff

 

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[Huly]

LOL LOL LOL

 

I got a sample of these worms and depending on who you talk to in my tank depends on their reaction:

 

Midas Blenny- Not interested at first but then took part of the feast

Anthia- No way no how

Clowns- looked like they were eating spaghetti LOL

Dorrie- "OMG it moved OMG OMG I need to run and hide AAAHHHH it might get me"

Pearly- Yum Yum

Skunk Cleaner shrimp- grabbed every worm its arms would hold and took off to enjoy.

Dendro- just held its mouth wide open waiting for them to fall in

Plate Coral & Small Aussie- loved them too.

Sun Coral- was not amused!

Lawnmower Blenny- ignored them and gave me dirty looks wanting more Nori on his rock.

[sachabballi reef]

My yellow belly was flying around the rank sucking them in so fast. Yesterday the anthias figured it out and the midas finally decided to try them after mocking the others on Saturday and became insane for them. Even the purple fire fish were in on it. The wrasses were eating machines. In the other tank the engineering gobies were not amused but the gold stripe clown and grama were insane and the clown fed his rbta who was extremely happy. None if them were picky later with their normal food either. So that's good

 

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[ArtFully Acrylic (Adam B)]

Jenn had her Blackworms with her when she came by the store Saturday. We trialed them in the lagoon tank where the Yellow Tang and Green Chromis went yum yum and chowed down...as did the Peppermints (no other fish in this tank so EVERYONE ate lol). Then we also gave some to the Calico Crab back in the invert system. At first, as they squirmed to the bottom, he didn't show any interest and did nothing while we watched. But, when we came back several minutes later there was no sign of them so he clearly became interested lol.

[sachabballi reef]

OK Adam be honest. The calico needs a short bus. The worms were on one side and the crab swam the other way completely but trying to catch them...as they fell behind it

.duh!

 

Edit..lol do crabs "swim"?

 

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Edited May 13, 2013 by sachabballi reef

[paul b]

Everything should learn to eat them eventually. I don't have that problem as my fish would eat cardboard, but they get worms every day and always have.

[YHSublime]

Everything should learn to eat them eventually. I don't have that problem as my fish would eat cardboard, but they get worms every day and always have.

 

I will try again. I've added some new fish, maybe they'll start the frenzy.

[Huly]

Everything should learn to eat them eventually. I don't have that problem as my fish would eat cardboard, but they get worms every day and always have.

 

Dorrie was afraid of the live mysid too. We think she might have been tank bred vs wild caught. Would that make a difference?

[paul b]

Dorrie was afraid of the live mysid too. We think she might have been tank bred vs wild caught. Would that make a difference?

 

I don't know, Ask Dorrie

[sachabballi reef]

haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa