# [Wet Thumb Forum]-Aquatic Worms in Natural Aquariums



## Miss Fishy (May 13, 2006)

I was just reading through the posts in El Natural, and came across one from late 2004 titled "Tubifex in the substrate".

I've been keeping blackworms in all my tanks and ponds for about 8 years now, so it was very interesting to read about other people's experiences with aquatic worms. I don't know if my worms are Californian blackworms; they are just sold as blackworms here. They look just like the ones in the pictures Betty posted of her worm aquarium, and don't grow longer than 5cm. They seem to do well in a wide variety of conditions, from my aquariums with soil to small ponds with only a few centimetres of water that get very hot in summer. I've never seen them with their tails lying on the water surface. Perhaps this means they only breathe air when there is not enough oxygen in the water? Or perhaps it means my worms are not Californian blackworms! In my aquariums they bring soil to the surface in one but not the other two. I often think there aren't any worms left, since the fish eat them, but when I watch the substrate surface for long enough or uproot a plant, I soon see there are quite a few. They really thrive in one pond that was originally for breeding Daphnia, but was taken over by plants and has a deciduous tree above it. It's really a marsh now, with only 0.5cm water over a dense substrate of decaying leaves. It is full of emergent Chain Swords, _Hygrophilla difformis_, Ludwigia, milfoils and couch grass! If I even put my little finger into the water, I come up with about 10 worms!

I'd love to hear more about how the people that posted went with their worm keeping projects.

Andrea, you wrote that you were going to add Tubifex to your aquarium. How did they go? Did they cause any problems stirring up the soil? Did they do better or worse than in the original plain gravel substrate?

Betty, how is your worm aquarium faring? Did you try any worms in your fish aquariums?

Diana, you wrote in January 2005 that all the blackworms in the aquarium you added them to had died out. Were they all in fact dead, or do you still see the odd one? Do you still keep any in trays as pets or to feed your fish?

I really enjoy keeping things other than plants, fish, snails and shrimp in my ponds and aquariums. It's so fun watching a tank and seeing something unexpected like a Cyclops or a flatworm swimming past! It's like having a little slice of a lake in my house!

From Alex.


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## dwalstad (Apr 14, 2006)

> Originally posted by Miss Fishy:
> I'd love to hear more about how the people that posted went with their worm keeping projects.
> 
> Diana, you wrote in January 2005 that all the blackworms in the aquarium you added them to had died out. Were they all in fact dead, or do you still see the odd one? Do you still keep any in trays as pets or to feed your fish?
> From Alex.


Dear Alex,

I haven't seen any worms in months. I think that they either got eaten or quietly disappeared.

The ones I had in trays, sad to say, didn't make it through the winter cold.

It sounds like you are enjoying your hobby more than anyone I know. It's wonderful to get such pleasure from your hobby. For awhile I couldn't stop watching some brine shrimp grow up and have their own young. I found it hard to feed them to my fish.


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## DataGuru (Mar 11, 2005)

I think mine are dead too. First the dog ate the peace lilly and I'd bet ammonia went sky high. Didn't check it... but I used the same topsoil as in the 125 and it took the 125 a while to become habitable cuz of ammonia levels. and keeping such a small container topped off, well let's just say I should have tried adding them to the tank. It's neat that you have a nice habitat for them outside!


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## Miss Fishy (May 13, 2006)

Oh, what a pity none of your worms survived. They are so cute and interesting! A couple of weeks ago I started up a new natural tank and today I saw a little family of four worms eating some fishfood flakes. 

I find it hard to feed my fish live food, even when I haven't watched it grow up! Unfortunately my Pygmy Perches require live prey. They eat about 30 creatures each per day, so I have to fish poor little animals out of the ponds and drop them into the tank for them to feast on. 

The temperature in my ponds probably doesn't go lower than about 8°C in the winter, so the worms survive. I'm amazed they get through the summer, 'though. Some of the ponds are very small (only a few litres) and I would think the temperature would get well over 35°C! 

From Alex.


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## DataGuru (Mar 11, 2005)

Yea, I hear ya. Poor little beasties! 
Right now I have wingless fruit flies, whiteworms, grindle worms, red worms and daphnia. The daphnia survived the winter here outside in large plastic trashcans. It gets pretty hot here too in summer. Before it gets to hot, I'd like to go on a collecting trip and see what I can find. lots of streams and lakes around here.


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## Miss Fishy (May 13, 2006)

What are red worms? Are they Tubifex or bloodworms or something else? 

I thought all my Daphnia had died (the pond I bred them in turned into a swamp), but then a few days ago I found some in one of my wriggler breeding buckets. Yay! They seem to be a different species to the ones I had before, so I don't know where they came from. The fish like them anyway. I breed blackworms, bloodworms, wrigglers and Daphnia for fishfood, and other critters that are pets. I started breeding brine shrimp, but it's winter here and it got too cold for them. I'll try again in the summer. 

From Alex.


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## DataGuru (Mar 11, 2005)

redworms are a type of earthworm. Here's some info on how to set up a red worm composter.
http://dataguru.org/misc/aquarium/Redwormcomposter.html

I think daphnia can survive just about anything. Last year, they managed to get into my green water tub. After netting out as many as I could, I dumped and rinsed the tub with chlorinated water then refilled it. This year, I thought I was home free, cuz the water got nice and pea soupy. Then I looked one day and it wasn't green anymore and there were a BUNCH of daphnia in the tub. I'd have to look it up again to be sure, but I think they change their reproductive strategy if conditions get bad for them.

I picked up some cherry shrimp today from a friend and put them in the 125. I hope the plant cover keeps them from becoming dinner for the Endlers.


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## Miss Fishy (May 13, 2006)

Thanks for the link, Betty. That "gel" food sounds great; I might make some for my two little Goldfish.

Daphnia produce only female young when conditions are good, and when conditions worsen, they produce some male young and eggs which need to be fertilised. These fertilized eggs are can withstand very harsh conditions including drying out and freezing! When conditions get good again, the eggs hatch out and the cycle starts again. There is an interesting page on Daphnia at http://www.caudata.org/daphnia/.

Those cherry shrimps sound lovely. What temperature do they need?

From Alex.


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## DataGuru (Mar 11, 2005)

Cool.









Tropical temps are fine for the shrimpies.


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## Miss Fishy (May 13, 2006)

Tonight I thought I'd have a look at my new, fishless tank. To avoid disturbing sleeping fish in other tanks, I took a torch. I discovered a huge swarm of round, sand-grain-sized critters feeding on some fishfood, as well as snails, blackworms, Daphnia and Cyclops.

I couldn't resist having a tiny peek into one of the other tanks, so I just shone the torch on the gravel in one corner. Whoosh! A large cloud of mulm flew up as a cluster of blackworms dived under the surface! I moved the light along and the same thing happened across the length of the tank. There must have been more than 100 worms! I thought the worms in this tank had all been eaten, but it seems they just sleep during the day now.

I wonder&#8230; are these worms actually nocturnal, or have they just realised my fish sleep very soundly?









From Alex.


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## dwalstad (Apr 14, 2006)

I'll carry a flashlight around tonight to see what's going on in the tanks.


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