In my saltwater tank I see bugs that look like flees and also "worms" but only at night what are they?

Question

I was looking in my tank lasy night with a flash light and I saw a couple of things that looked like worms. Once the light was on them they slowly went into holes in the rock. I didn't see any tubes. Also there are small bugs that look like flees. There kind of fast and they run around the rocks. I dont know what copipods or amphipods look like. I dont know what either of these things are and I have a uv sterizer if that means anything.

where did the copipods or amphipods come from? and the worms color was greyish, and others were a dark color.

where did the copipods or amphipods come from? and the worms color was greyish, and others were a dark color and they had no legs.

Answer 1

The bugs you see might be small gammarid or mysis shrimp (types of amphipods) - I've got these in my tank too, they came with the live rock. I've got smaller copepods too - they're are even called water fleas in freshwater ponds. And your worms may be just that. Bristleworms are the most common and they live in the holes in the rock - they only come out when it's dark or there's food. These are pinkish with white bristles that really sting if you touch them (so don't!). I'll post some links below with photos that may help you identify what you saw. The photo of the gammarid is listed as "amphipod" under the "bug" album, but it's really a shrimp.

All of the critters are too big to be affected by the UV - it only works on critters that are a few cells in size. So if you can see these critters in your tank without a microscope, they're too big for the UV to kill.

Good luck with the tank - you'll probably be seeing lots more critters before you're done! I recently found a 6-legged brittle star in my filter, four months after I set up my most recent tank. If you want a good book on the critters your finding, check out one of these: Reef Invertebrates, by Anthony Calfo & Robert Fenner or "Invertebrates, A Quick Reference Guide"
by Julian Sprung

Answer 2

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RE:
In my saltwater tank I see bugs that look like flees and also "worms" but only at night what are they?
I was looking in my tank lasy night with a flash light and I saw a couple of things that looked like worms. Once the light was on them they slowly went into holes in the rock. I didn't see any tubes. Also there are small bugs that look like flees. There kind of fast and they run around the...

Answer 3

Yeah kind of neat what you see with a light in the tank at night. The flea looking things can be anything from sand fleas to cuddlefish larve. Nothing to worry about chances are they came in the rock and either hatched or survived the cycle process. The worms as well, however I will advise you not to touch them. Bristle worms are the most notorious worms that come in the rock especially if it wasn't cured properly.

Banded shrimp will keep them in check while they are small, however if you are seeing the smaller ones, chances are you have a large one in there somewhere. Again don't touch them. They really pose no threat to your tank and while small the shrimp will eat them. As they get larger however can quickly over take the tank. Easiest way to rid your tank of them is to put a piece of shrimp into a panty hose (cut of course) tied up with a string and let it sit in the tank over night and in the morning you will have caught you some bristle worms. Again don't touch them. Care also must be used when rearranging your live rock so you do not come in contact with the worms. Their glass like spines iwll break off in your skin.

Answer 4

All of these things most likely came in as hitchikers on your live rock. The pods are of course a good thing. Bristleworms may or may not be a god thing. Even the ones that do not feed on corals can reproduce to massive proportions. There are various colors of bristleworms. There are all pretty painful if you touch them though. The first poster gave some good advise on what to do if you do get stung. If you want to control the population introducing a wrasse to the tank will help keep them under control. Several of the wrasse species eat bristleworms and they all like to munch on pods.

Personally I wouldn't worry about them. Have fun watching your tank come alive at night. If the worms get out of control then worry about getting rid of some. If your doing regular maintenance and vacumming the gravel some when you do water changes you should be able to keep the worms numbers managable.

Answer 5

What you are seeing is copepods and amphipods. The copepods look like little fleas, while the amphipods are a bit bigger. They are both good to have as they help with detritus digestion and are also a great fish food.

The worms you are seeing are most likely bristleworms, which are also a big help in detritus digestion. There are some b.worms that will eat coral, but they are very rare. As a side note, if you happen to accidentally touch a b.worm, it will feel as though you have tiny shards of glass in your skin. If this happens, cover the area with duct tape and then pull the duct tape off. This removes the b.worm's spines. Then run your hand or finger under water as hot as you can stand it for a bit. This will neutralize any poison that might have gotten in from the b.worm...

Answer 6

Salt Water Bugs

Answer 7

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Actually it depends on what kind of lightning you have if you have just regular lightning, absolutely however, if you have also a moonlight installed, this will be turned on at night when the other one turns off It should be left off every 28 days though, which gives the fish the feeling of the moon cycle Hope that helps Good luck EB