Planaria are non-parasitic small flatworms,represented by a variety of species, in our waters. They are introduced into the aquarium in the form of cocoons. They have a nocturnal life. Planaria live free in the aquatic environment without harming the fish. Usually they appear when the fish are overfed, the aquarium gravel is not hoovered accordingly or ammonia levels have risen.
An easy method to get rid of them is to made a gauze bag, in which is inserted shredded beef. The bag is hung among plants, near the bottom of the tank. Planaria are attracted by the smell of meat, and they will gather on this bags. After several hours, under the bag, carefully insert a bowl of water or a cup, which is then easily removed from the tank, along with the bag. Bait traps should be repeated several days in a row.
Planaria can also be destroyed by introducing several hungry macropodus fish in the tank. Sometimes it is used the chemical method with ammonium nitrate at a concentration of 0.6 to 0.8 grams at 100 liters of water.
A couple things:
ReplyDeleteWhy do I want rid of these things?
What are macropodus? Just starting out and not a Latin major.
What are the possible out comes of dosing a tank with ammonium nitrate. What if I had live plants? What about invertibrates
If you ever had planaria in your tank than you wished to get rid of them, unless you like to have worms walking on the front glass. Macropodus is a species of fish, if you search on google you will find them. If you respect the concetrations the plants,fish and invertebrates won't be affected.
ReplyDelete