Leeches
Within the course of putting together your aquarium environment, you'll introduce a selection of living organisms: plants, invertebrates, "living" rock and alternative media for beneficial bacteria, and after all fish. But, as in any environment, parasites could realize their method in. One common parasite that can be damaging to your aquarium setting and harmful to your fish is that the leech.
 |
New 4 Units - Lindy Shake-E Blade Harness Live Bait Rigs Walleye Leeches Minnows |  |
0 Bid | US $9.99 | 2h 50m |
 |
ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES New Draper FREE Shipping Offer LQQK | |
1 Bid | US $.99 | 3h 34m |
 |
12 custom tied leeches for Steelhead or trout | |
0 Bid | US $9.99 | 5h 28m |
 |
6 MICRO LEECHES - great for Alaska rainbow trout and arctic grayling | |
 |
US $6.99 | 2h 29m |
 |
ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES New Draper FREE Shipping Offer LQQK | |
|
US $9.95 | 1d 3h 47m |
 |
BLESSING OF LEECHES X4 4 4X Betrayers of Kamigawa MTG Magic Cards DJMagic | |
0 Bid | US $.99 | 1d 9h 18m |
 |
MTG Leeches x4 from Homelands. N/M Light Play. Great Collectible | |
|
US $22.60 | 1d 21h 14m |
 |
16mm Film Trailer A BUCKET OF BLOOD The Giant Leeches HORROR Previews | |
1 Bid | US $9.99 | 2d 1h 15m |
| Powered by phpBay Pro |
A leech is an annelid, or segmented worm; it is flattened, with a sucker on each the tail and also the mouth. Leeches propel themselves forward by using both suckers, producing a motion the same as that of an inchworm. Most live in water; there are freshwater, saltwater, and terrestrial varieties. Several leeches, given the chance, will attach themselves to humans and other creatures, sucking the host creature's blood. It absolutely was common medical practice in the Middle Ages to "bleed" a patient by attaching a leech to the patient's body and permitting the leech to drink his fill. Medieval medicine wrongly held that the body was composed of four principal fluids, or "humors," and that an imbalance among these humors was the most explanation for disease. Blood was one of the humors and was often regarded as in excess; therefore, bleeding a patient helped bring the extent of blood into balance with the other humors.
Leeches are sometimes simple to identify in your aquarium: it's unlikely you will see any of the larger varieties, however freshwater leeches which may find their approach into your aquarium can still be up to 2 inches long. Leeches swim in an undulating motion. If they are hooked up to a fish, they may be heart-formed, as they curl up onto your fish's body, fins, or gills. The odd leech bite isn't going to hurt your fish in any major manner, however an infestation can cause major issues, inflicting fish to become listless and thin. Leech bites will render fish vulnerable to alternative diseases; open wounds can become infected. And a leech can transfer microbial diseases from one fish to another.
Leeches would possibly initial enter your tank via live food that comes from leech-infested waters. If you depend upon live food that you simply grow yourself, you'll greatly scale back the prospect of a leech infestation. Leeches will conjointly come back via new fish that you simply introduce, or new plant life. Be sure to examine new creatures or plants thoroughly; if you're involved, you'll keep new fish quarantined for a period of time before allowing them to combine along with your existing specimens. And you can place new plant life in an exceedingly potassium permanganate resolution, 5 mg/l, for concerning an hour before introducing them to your tank. The potassium permanganate can kill any leeches that may be hiding in the foliage.
If you discover a leech attached to your fish, don't be tempted to remove it with a combine of tweezers (or pliers!); leeches burrow themselves into your fish's body to draw blood, and forcible removal will seriously hurt your fish. Instead, bathe your fish for regarding fifteen minutes in a very 2.five p.c saline solution. This could cause the leech to discarding, or to loosen its grip such that you can ease it out while not leaving any leech parts inside your fish. If your fish are sensitive to salt -- as an example, certain species of catfish -- then saline answer will not work; you'll need to medicate your entire tank by adding one milligram of trichlorofon for every gallon of water in your tank. The trichlorofon might be harmful to some plants, therefore it'd be best to get rid of the plants first and treat them with potassium permanganate, as described above.
Though leeches are not everybody's idea of a perfect aquarium pet, they're fascinating creatures in their own right, and some individuals do keep them, sequestered in their own small aquarium of course. They're easy to keep and do not demand abundant food: a small piece of meat or an earthworm each week is sometimes enough to stay a leech happy. They're quick to seek out food sources, however, and will answer your finger rubbing along the outside of the tank further on shadows passing overhead. If you keep substrate in your leech tank, the leeches tend to burrow; they are conjointly excellent scavengers. Most leeches are freshwater, but as a result of there are marine varieties, be certain you recognize what kind of water your leech can need.
No Comments »
No comments yet.
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
