flatworms

[ReeferMike]

been dealing with flatworms lately... not aefw but the common reddish brown ones. ive been manually removing them for the last week or so syphoning them out with an airhose but i know in the back of my mind ill never get rid of them completely that way. i really dont want to resort to flatworm exit or anything like that, so what are my options? im not seeing any negative impact on any of my corals, its my understanding they are more of just an eyesore and consume pods... is this correct?

been looking into a melanarus wrasse after reading about it in reefkeeping... anyone have first hand experiance with one?

kindof confusing how i even got them... never had them before and really havent added anything new in a long time. most of my rock and coral have been with me for years in various tanks.

any help is appreciated

[Sir Patrick]

The melanarus wrasse sounds like a good bet to try, along with the yellow and green coris wrasse. The lined wrasse seem to be more hit and miss.

[ReeferRob]

I once had a six line that did some work! I've also heard that psycadelic madrins love any type of flat work or bug!

[ReeferMike]

thanks, looks like im going to start shopping around for a nice wrasse;) id love a mandarin but ive never been able to keep one for any length of time.

[tazzy695]

I have heard six lines will take them out

mandrines eat pods not fw but many wrasses will eat the worms

[ReeferRob]

I have heard six lines will take them out

mandrines eat pods not fw but many wrasses will eat the worms

Have you owned either?

[tazzy695]

well i do have a sixline but have never had fw

one thing is if you use a fish to controle them is that it wont get rid of them but just controle the quantity

[ReeferMike]

so i grabbed my airline tube to do my ritual purification of flatworms in the tank today and couldnt find any of them. could i really have done that much damage to them over the last few weeks syphoning them out? ( i find hard to believe) or is it likely that i had a population explosion due to a food source that is now gone for whatever reason and theyre dieng off now much like brisstle worms and pods and whatnot?

the tank has only been setup for a month, some of the rock came out of my nano, the rest of it had been cooking for a few months. same with the sand, i used what i had in the nano and added a couple bags of new aragonite.

could it have just been part of a new tank syndrome? or is it more likely they were all just hiding:confused:

[Sir Patrick]

It could go either way. Keep an eye on things.

I have always waited the flatworms out the couple times I had them. They show up, get to max capacity, then dwindle down to nothing and die.

At least that is what has happened for me.

Still getting a wrasse? They are great watchdogs of the reeftank for pest extermination and preventatives of future infestations. Not only are they cool to look at, but they do a job at the same time. They are very benificial if you are a zoanthid/sps keeper.

[ReeferMike]

well theyre back again... not too many but enough that i know theyre still there. its nice to know that they will eventually dwindle but yea i do still want to get a wrasse.

are coris wrasses prone to jumping out of the tank?

[tazzy695]

unfortunately all wrasses are prone to jumping especialy if you have a fish that might pick on them

[Sir Patrick]

Pretty much all wrasses are prone to jumping. Best bet is to jump proof your tank.

If you have a canopy, that sits atop of your tank, you can run a line of gutter guard across the back opening. If your top is wide open, there are screens that you can make to cover your tank that wont interfear with gass exchange/light penetration. You can also just sit back with your fingers crossed.

Waiting the flatworms out sounds easier than it is....The will get to huge proportions before they dwindle away, and can smother corals out in this process.

Best bet, if you arent comfortable using a chemical, is to keep siphoning what you can and let a wrasse take care of the rest. If I recall right, there is a damsel that is prone to eating flatworms also. Cant remember for sure.

Good luck!