red flatworms

[iceman302]

iv'e got red flat worms growing every where how the h*ll do you get rid of them iv'e tryied vucuuming them they come right back anyone got any sugeastions

 

[jedininja]

Mosts worms are good for your tank, but if you dont like them them there are things that eat them. Arrow crabs are one and some types of fishes such as wrasses. I had fire bristleworms that ate half my bubble coral and I got a lime green wrasse and they finished up the fireworms in no time. Unfortunatly they also finished off most of my other works too. The only things left are tiny worms that are pretty much too small for them.

 

[nm reef]

Luckily I've never had to deal with flatworms but its my understanding that they can become a serious problem and are not safe in a reef system. There are some fish and nudibranches that are reported to consume them but I have no specific info on either. Try a search as suggested and you may find some information that is more specific. I have heard that in some cases folks simply vac them out as much as possible and in time the numbers are reduced and they simply go away...but as I stated I have absolutely zero hands on experience in dealing with these pests.....

 

[dwarfs]

seams to me i read hear not one of the post that mandrin fish ate flatworms?

 

[danrw84]

Originally posted by SuperElvisa
I don't think they are bad.
okay dude. yeah, they are bad.

 

[krishj39]

dwarfs, i recall the post you had in mind. it was said that the person had heard of mandarins that ate flatworms, not that he HAD a mandarin that ate flatworms. so, who knows. maybe an oddball mandarin will eat them, but safe to say most won't touch them.

 

[mlm]

I had these in my tank at one time in the thousands. They were there b/c I was overfeeding my tank and I did not have a skimmer so my nutrient levels were out of whack. Since then I have gotton a skimmer and cut back on feeding 90%. They are now all gone. The name of the Nudibranch that eats them is called "head shield nudibranch" and the genus name is Chelidomura. If you have or have access to Julian Sprung's Invertabrates: A Quick Reference guide they are on page 93.

 

[glazer]

The red ones are photosynthetic.... at least that's my understanding. So it's just not an "excess nutrient" problem that helps them reach plague proportions. Six-line wrasses are good bet as far as "crowd control". It's not guaranteed but they have knocked out all the flatworms for me a couple of times in the past.

 

[josh]

You can try a dragonette or a leapord wrasse. Oomed does work if you can find it. Also, I too have read the post about greenex working, but it might dye your silicone.
All in all, there really isn't a way to eradicate them without medicating your tank. The best bet is just to try to keep the population under control.
This reefer has tried everything short of medicating her tank. She details it on a month to month basis.
Here is the link.
I guess the gist of this is you will just have to learn to live with them or completly tear apart your tank.

 

[kelly]

I had a breakout of them a few months back, the whole tank was covered. I talked to Anthony Calfo (author of "Book or Coral Propogation"). and he recommend more water flow, and to cut back on lighting. I did it, and they are now gone.
I have also heard the 6 line wrasses, possibly mandarins and oomed work well. I would not recommend the mandarins though. Even if they did eat planaria, unless you have a good supply of pods, they would slowly starve to death.
Best wishes