What the heck is in my tank!?!?

sueandherzoo

sueandherzoo

Active Member
I was glancing in the tank tonight with a magnifying glass for amusement - you never know what new wonders you're going to find, and BOY did it pay off! This is something I did not expect nor have I ever seen before! This "thing" is flat like a flounder but slithers like a snail and just kind of glides over and into the rocks and crevices. And it's BIG from what I can see! I never got to see the whole thing because as one part was coming up from a crevice the other part was slithering into another crevice, but it's at least 3 inches by 3 inches. sometimes round, sometimes oblong, take on any shape it wants! Brownish tan with some spotting..... what in heck is it!?!?! I didn't think I'd be able to capture it on film but I think some of the shots are pretty good. Any ideas or thoughts? It's nothing I bought and I just can't imagine how it could be this big but never seen before!
Sue




 
jshepherd

jshepherd

Member
I had the exact same thing. I just happened to look and could not believe my eyes. I took a pic I went to get the net to try to get it and before I could catch it it had went under a rock and was gone. it has probably been 6 months and I have not seen it again ??
 
sueandherzoo

sueandherzoo

Active Member
OK, I'm at the office reading the responses here and breaking out in a cold sweat..... what's the story with polyclad flatworms? Yes, I'll go Google right after I submit this but wanted to reply here first.
I'm not sure I'll ever be able to find it again -- I stare in my tank OFTEN with red light and magnifying glass and have NEVER seen this thing before so I'm not hopeful I'll ever see it again. I just reaquascaped the entire tank over the weekend and had handled every piece of rock -- do they shrivel up or hide well enough that I could have missed it or maybe it sometimes buries itself in the sand bed?
How dangerous is it? I mean, dangerous enough that I should again this weekend totally dismantle my tank to find it? I so hate doing that - it's not only a lot of work but also disruptive to the livestock. You think there are any traps that attract them?
Ugh - sometimes I think I'm better off NOT knowing what's in there, but thanks for the feedback. Off to go read.
Sue
 
jshepherd

jshepherd

Member
Let the more experienced tell you but in my case I watched exactly where it went and I could NOT find it. I wish now that I would have taken the rock he was going under and all the sand from that area out and put it in a container and boiled it out or freshwater dipped it to see if it would come out.
I will be following closely to see what they say.. I sorta forgot about that nightmare haha.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
problem with polyclads is they are predatory. they will eat, usually, just one thing.
the one posted a few posts up looks like a clam eater--they color themselves to look like clams' mantles so they don't get disturbed.
something that big has got to be eating stuff. are you missing things, corals looking bad, etc?
the other issue is if you DON'T get it out, is if it dies they can release toxins. that would be bad, especially ohhw big yours is...
 
petjunkie

petjunkie

Active Member
Maybe stay up a few more nights and try and catch it. Had anything die or go missing in there? I would think one would die if they didn't have their diet to feast on but no idea how long that takes. Anytime I find something I can't identify I take it out until I figure out what it is, then it goes back in or gets flushed. Better safe than sorry.
 
sueandherzoo

sueandherzoo

Active Member
Originally Posted by Bang Guy
http:///forum/post/2952630
I would guess it eats Snails but Clams are certainly on the menu.
How are your Snails doing?
I had placed a littleneck clam in the tank a few months ago for the puffer but he never ate it so the clam burrowed itself under the sand behind a rock and lived there peacefully for quite a while but while I was searching the tank the other night I did notice the clam shell was now empty.
Regarding snails, it's hard to tell. I have quite a few in there, some end up dead sometimes but they also reproduce like rabbits so it's hard to say how many are killed, if any. I should maybe try to pay attention to how many I can count some day and see if the number diminishes over time.
From the reading I've done it doesn't seem like having this thing in my tank is necessarily horrible, unlike, like you all said, it dies in there. I'll keep an eye out for him but I don't think I want to flush him. But I don't want to stick him in my 14 gallon biocube or in my horse tank either so I guess I'll have to. Either that or I'll bring him to my LFS.
Sue
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
ewww. it kinda looks like a tongue....Now if I was you I'd be sitting there with my nose against the glass looking all over for it....Probably wouldn't rest until I found it.
Good luck
 
oceansidefish

oceansidefish

Active Member
Yeahhhhh I would build a trap of some kind for it...Maybe with a sacrificial snail in a waterbottle in the sand bed...I would not flush it. Just toss it in the trash
 
sueandherzoo

sueandherzoo

Active Member
Sorry to resurrect such an old thread, but since I haven't actually seen this thing since last February this is the only way to post pix of it.
Since I have a few days off I'm thinking of re-aquascaping my 55 gallon. I'm thinking since I will be handling and removing each and every rock, this would be a great time to find and remove this "thing", if it's still in there.
I'm looking for suggestions on what to do with each piece of rock that will help me find bad stuff without killing good stuff. Should I have a bucket handy with fresh water in it? Hypo salinity water? Hyper salinity water? If I put each rock in the sink and hit it with the sprayer to get the uglies to run out, will I also be killing the good stuff in my live rock?
I don't know if this big creature (in the photos) is still in there or not but this would be a good time to find out. I have been unable to keep snails in this tank but I don't know if that's the puffer eating them or something else. Also, recently I realized that none of my crabs are around anymore (Sally Lightfoot, Porcelain, Anemone crab, Emerald crab, etc.)
Thanks in advance for suggestions. Good weekend to do stuff to the tank but I don't want to make matters worse by doing the wrong things.
Sue
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Pufferfish are predators of both crustaceans and mollusks, it does not suprise me that you have issues keeping them. I would not necessarily assume it was the flatworm at this point. What kind of puffer is it?
 
sueandherzoo

sueandherzoo

Active Member
He's a porcupine puffer........ and he was a very picky eater at one time but, who knows.... maybe he has finally developed a taste for new things.
Now that you mention it, he has grown in size a lot the past few months.

Sue
 
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