Red planaria

TerraVlog

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Hi everyone,
Lately I've noticed that Red Planaria flatworms have started appearing on the front glass of my aquarium. The tank is almost 3 years old and everything else seems fine. What should I do about them?

I also have two questions:

Why are they so fragile? I wanted to observe one under a microscope, but they are quite mobile, so I tried to kill one first. However, when I put it in tap water, it “burst.” When I tried to deprive it of water, it also burst.

When I finally managed to observe one, I noticed it was made up of a transparent membrane and something that looked like tiny hairs. It also released an orange fluid that looked like a clump of cells (microscope photo below).
https://files.fm/u/fbsm2y8pnb(Idk why but admins changed the way you can upload pics so its the only way i could do it)

As for their presence—should I be worried? I have a mandarin dragonet, but it ignores them and doesn’t want to eat them.
 
Gotta be careful with red planaria, when they die they release toxins.
Manual removal when doing water changes it best, suck them up with the hose.
Otherwise flatworm x and run carbon and monitor the tank
 

HOW MUCH DOES A FISH’S FEEDING REQUIREMENTS AFFECT YOUR STOCKING DECISIONS?

  • A lot! - I avoid fish that require frequent or specialized feeding

    Votes: 20 32.8%
  • Quite a bit, but an automatic feeder can change my answer

    Votes: 8 13.1%
  • It depends on whether my nutrient export can handle it

    Votes: 9 14.8%
  • It depends on how badly I want the fish

    Votes: 12 19.7%
  • Not much. I’m willing to adjust my routine

    Votes: 9 14.8%
  • Not at all. Feeding demands don’t limit my stocking choices

    Votes: 11 18.0%
  • I usually learn about the demanding feeding schedule after buying the fish!

    Votes: 2 3.3%
  • I haven’t really considered this before

    Votes: 4 6.6%
  • Something else (see my comments in the thread)

    Votes: 2 3.3%
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