BUGS or Worms?

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Well, my tank is going on 5 months. I haven't payed much attention to it since I discovered Ich in it 4 weeks ago. So it has been fallow since then. I turned on some room lights becaus I wanted to feen my anemane. I then noticed these bugs/worms running around. They are NOT pods. These things were 1/8" to 1/4" in lenght and plentifull. I turned the lights off an will try to get some pics later tonight. Any ideas? At first I thought they were baby shrimp... but they are too long any cylindrical. Thx
 
are they anchored anywhere? Alot of these worms are night feeders. Do they come out of the sand as well? What were they doing? Munching on things they shouldn't be?
 
Could be pods (different types of pods vary in size), or could be worms, doubt they are bugs. Whatever they are they are probably harmless unless they just get so large in numbers they use up all of the resources. As long as you have fish eating those pods that will not be an issue.
 
Pod is just a garbage term meant to label all the crustaceans we're unable to name. :p

Let's have a pic!
 
I just went through the pictures that I took last night. This is probably the best one. I will try again tonight to get a better picture.

I don't have any fish in there at the moment. It will be 3 more weeks before they can go back in due to an Ich outbreak.

worms008.jpg
 
It's an amphipod. Once you put in fish the number will dwindle. They'll be more adept at hiding. They are harmless.
 
Wow, thanks. I turned on the lights tonight and they all scattered. Some running over each other. Kind of cheap entertainment. I would venture to guess some are between 1/4"-3/8" long. But this is through glass... so probably a touch smaller. Looks like my fish will be eating good for a while once they get back in there:)
 
Yes pod and are great for keeping tank perms low. Its strang to see one out in the open like that , they mainly come out at night. They hide in LR and its best to add atleast 1 to 1.5 lbs per gal (LR ) to keep there pop happy. Some fish like mandrins can clean a tank dry of these so a refug can help keep population stable.
 
That is an amphipod as dc said but it is not harmless. I have personally watched amphipods consume zoos. I am not alone on this, alot of people are loosing zoos only to find the amphipods chewing them to nothing during the night. I got a sixline wrasse and never lost another zoo since.
 
Hmmm... very interesting. I don't have any zoos at the moment, but I plan on getting some. I will keep that in mind. Thx
 
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