Torch Eating Flatworm.

[reefboarder]

Here are some pics of a creature I suspect may be the reason why I have ten torch skeletons in my tank.I would like to mention That I have been able to grow and keep all kinds of corals with the occasional RTN of an acro and a few zoanthids have melted on me but no crashes to date and EVERY torch I have ever had ends up dying, If anyone has any torch keeping secrets Please share but I think this flatworm infestation may be the culprit. Also ideas to get rid of these creeps are greatly appreciated.


The worm got a little messed up by the tweezers when i pulled him out, There were a few of them on a couple different heads that got pulled out in an attempt to save what I have left. The body of the worm was not shaped like that it was pretty even and smooth all around but he got tore a bit like I mentioned

 

[NirvanaFan]

It's definitely some type of polyclad flatworm. Did you find it in the head of the torch?

 

[reefboarder]

Slinking around just below the flesh of the head on the skeleton.

 

[Johnny C]

NirvanaFan is right, it is in fact a Polyclad Flatworm, which will make a meal out of your LPS, Clams, and whatever else it fancies. I would highly suggest removing any that you see from the aquarium!

 

[NirvanaFan]

Note that flatworm exit doesn't do anything to these guys.

 

[solRNY]

curious to how big is it? dime size?

 

[reefboarder]

it was a little smaller than a dime.
Johnny, is manual removal the only way? can I dip my lps?

 

[reefboarder]

Any Idea if Chelidonura varians: blue velvet nudibranch will eat polyclads?

 

[Johnny C]

I've never heard of anything that will naturally eradicate them, although I can't say for certain. These Polyclads are usually camouflaged and because of their feeding habits are rarely out where they can be spotted. Quite frankly, in my years of working at the LFS I've only seen them a handful of times, and most were about the diameter of a silver dollar with the exception of one about the diameter of a pop can. I do know however that we typically found one during (or shortly after) a clam mysteriously died.

I did experiment with Polyclads and TLF Coral Revive, and found it to be very effective when trying to remove the flatworm(s) from a coral/rock. More detailed information can be found in this article written by long-time hobbyist Ron Schimek.

 

[GMaquarium]

On the plus side they don't reproduce fast to take over entire reef tanks. I sometimes see polyclads show up on wild corals but they do die in dips. Tropic marin coral cure, revive and rx all seem to work for me. These worms are hard to notice and even harder to remove. More the reason to dip things heavy. Some of the clam eaters can look just like the clam pattern. I would assume that some of the larger wrasses should eat them. If they find the flat worms.

 

[GMaquarium]

this[/URL] article written by long-time hobbyist Ron Schimek.

The shimek article is good. It was Dr. Ron who identified the first polyclad I found in my tank years ago.

 

[NirvanaFan]

I lost a clam to one of these guys back in the day. It looked exactly like the pattern on my deresa. It was just a little bigger than a table spoon.

 

[Tyler10121012]

ok...i have the same problem...and i fixed it in2 days...flat worm Xit only works for reds but theses guys might be the torch killer..get coral RX and dip all your corals in it and it will kill and remove all flatworms on that rock or coral...tedious, but rewarding

 

[reefboarder]

What I am about to say is probably absurd, but can you dose that to the tank or will it kill the beneficial inverts and bacteria?


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