notwithit Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 Its still on the loose. I have not seen it after I tried to grab it a few nights ago with tweezers. I look every time I get up at night with my red flashlight. It ate all my Florida cerith snails from reef cleaners I just bought. What if you used a snail as bait? Only put one cerith in the trap and make it so only the flatworm can get in. Link to comment
Rollermonkey Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 There's the rub. These things can squeeze in and out of just about anywhere. He's going to have to catch it before it leaves the trap again. Link to comment
notwithit Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 There's the rub. These things can squeeze in and out of just about anywhere. He's going to have to catch it before it leaves the trap again. Yes thats the part. He'll have to pay attention. But since the snail is the food if he puts a cerith in and the cerith cant get out he'd have a good chance of getting it. yes? Link to comment
Rollermonkey Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 Hopefully. Ceriths can climb pretty well, too. How many snails has this thing killed already, can you tell? Link to comment
Psychosis Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 Get all Rambo 2 on this b. Get a fishing hook, stab and twist then reel it in. Hard to slime up and scurry away when you've got a hook in the torso area of you gelatinous body...I think. Link to comment
Psychosis Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 Even if the flatworm has a chopper. Link to comment
racer_X_123 Posted June 23, 2013 Author Share Posted June 23, 2013 Haha you guys are funny... Well I bought 6 large ceriths and 4 are dead. I know that they were alive when I added them . I am going out of town for a few days but when I get back I am going to get this slimy bastard. Also here is a picture of the trap. Just some spare stuff I had laying around. Link to comment
Blubbernaut Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 Get all Rambo 2 on this b. Get a fishing hook, stab and twist then reel it in. Hard to slime up and scurry away when you've got a hook in the torso area of you gelatinous body...I think. Should I bring out my shark rod? Maybe we'll need a gaff, too! Link to comment
Psychosis Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 For this 2" beast, being at the ready with a gaff may be imperative. I'm on Rambo duty, who's our gaffer? Seriously though, I hope your trap works. This worm is kind of cool though. Link to comment
Rollermonkey Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 For this 2" beast, being at the ready with a gaff may be imperative. I'm on Rambo duty, who's our gaffer? Seriously though, I hope your trap works. This worm is kind of cool though, because it isn't in MY tank.. Fixed that for ya. Link to comment
Psychosis Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 I made peace with nasty hitchhikers years ago. They keep cool while they're on my block, I don't pay a lifer to shiv them. Link to comment
Blubbernaut Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 For this 2" beast, being at the ready with a gaff may be imperative. I'm on Rambo duty, who's our gaffer? I GOT THIS, MAN! But seriously, that would be kinda entertaining. Link to comment
racer_X_123 Posted June 24, 2013 Author Share Posted June 24, 2013 If I get it out in one piece I will be sure to document it. Will anyone want it or should I just kill it? How should I kill it? Get creative or be humane? Link to comment
Parker0824 Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 If its the clam eating ones which I think it is try and get a bunch of turbos. If you have clams this will make them hopefully avoid the clams and go for the turbos now if you can when ones in the shell eating the turbo pull it. I've known someone that has done this and had success. Also something else with a flashlight I've heard works like putting it in a corner but I've never tried so idk. Link to comment
Blubbernaut Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Get creative.... EXTREMELY creative.... Link to comment
racer_X_123 Posted August 12, 2013 Author Share Posted August 12, 2013 GOT HIM!!! its after 11 now but I got home, checked the tank and sure enough he was muching on a snail. Pulled the rock he was climbing into and hot him pics and details tomorrow afternoon! Link to comment
psidriven Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 Check with your local college or aquarium. I remember there was a post looking for these for research. Too bad they hide, cause they're cool looking. Link to comment
racer_X_123 Posted August 12, 2013 Author Share Posted August 12, 2013 Well I'm at work now so I can't update with pictures but what I CAN update with are some details of the harrowing effort of last nights grand battle! So I get home a bit later than usual and as I always do when I get home I flip the lights on in my room and look for at the tank. This time to my surprise I see the flatworm on the sandbed!!! I was so excited that he was out in the open that I must have let out a small battle cry because my Fiance came running.... I flipped the room lights out so it would not dash into the rock work, grab my red LED flashlight so that I can see, and I grab the turkey baster. When I got into position it was moving very slow... it was eating a snail at the time so it had to choose between hiding and finishing its meal... Not realizing it was about to meet its maker it opted for meal time. I took the turkey baster and got it into postion right in the center of the worm... I released the bulb and all it did was get stuck to the baster, it was not strong enough to actually suck up the guy. I pull out the turkey baster and toss it aside into the bucket I had ready. I ran and got the water change siphon... I yelled out "I've got you now Mother F!" and I started the siphon. By this time it had figured out that it was not safe. It started into a piece of the live rock so when I got the siphon into position it was not powerful enough to pull it out of the rock. I stopped the siphon and had no choice but to remove the rock. I reached in, grabbed the rock, and pulled the whole thing out and into the bucket. IT WAS FINALLY OUT OF MY TANK!!! I took it to the bathroom and put the rock in the sink. The flatworm was SLIMING like crazy! It looked like a giant Loogy. I was able to snap some pictures... One on my phone, others with my camera. I am uploading one as an attachment. You can still see the poor nsarius snail that fell victim. At this point it was working its way into the rock. I had one shot to get it out and grabbing it failed before so I took the turkey baster and tried to dislodge it so it would fall off and I could take it somewhere... like the sidewalk!!! That failed, it was just sliming and scrunching up so I had to be more aggressive. I knew that freshwater dips are a good choice for pest removal so I had my Fiance who was watching run and grab the bottle of distilled water. Added some to a bucket and suspended the rock in the water. All sorts of Pods, brittle stars, and other cool GOOD guys came out of the rock like rats on a sinking ship.... the flatworm was steadfast in his position and was not giving in. I set the rock down in the water and started to work on plan B. At this point I didnt want to put this rock back into my tank for fear of a mini cycle caused be all the death and destruction caused by the freshwater dip. I ALSO didn't want to loose the small zoa colony that was on the rock. Luckily I was able to get 90% of the zoa colony off with little trouble and glue it to a piece of dry rock that I had. I add that to the tank and go back to check on the flatworm. Well the freshwater dip did the trick. it was not dead but still inside the rock. I tried to dislodge it by agitating the rock hoping it would slide out of the rock and into the water in 1 piece, it didn't, it just broke apart into a billion pieces and a giant gooey mess. Having to wake up for work I just tossed everything into the bath tub to deal with in the morning. The flatworm is now gone and now the job of getting all the snail shells off the bottom of the sand bed can begin. Link to comment
notwithit Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 Quite the harrowing tale of an epic struggle! Link to comment
NanoTopia Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Epic, I was lucky to catch mine on the glass, took out the forceps and pulled him off the glass. Glad you got him out. Link to comment
Blubbernaut Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 You shoulda mailed it to me. Coulda used it as bait. Nice work! Link to comment
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