# tiny bugs or summit living in turtle water what are they?



## aking2 (Nov 16, 2008)

i have a map turtle and clean out filters and tank every week but have noticed lately that there are some white tiny THINGS floating/swimming in the tanks water they are so small they very hard to notice but under magnifyer they look like some sort of bug (i.e beetle with tails) and yesterday i noticed a hair like white worm thing too i have some white cloud fish in with the turtle for him to catch and eat. what are these paracite things and does anyone know if they are harmful to my turtle who is only 11 months old? he seams quite healthy and active please help


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## LauraMartin (Apr 15, 2008)

hiya, im not sure about turtles as i dont have them, but i had tini white things in my snakes water and i posted a thread and it looks like they are dust mites. heres the thread for u to read. http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/snakes/214069-white-mites-please-help-me.html


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## aking2 (Nov 16, 2008)

thanx for that was worried that they could have been harmful to turtle or fish have cleaned out everything even boiled the tank and gravel and rocks but as soon as i put fresh water in they were there again cant seem to get rid but still wondering about the white thread like worms swimming in the water?????????


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## Ceretrea (Nov 17, 2008)

The worms may have come with the fish. Do you pour the fish in with the water from the bag? If so, net them out in future and discard the water in the bag as it can carry nasties from the fish shop (if thats where you got them). My fish shop occasionally feeds live tubifex and they have been known to hitch a ride in the fish bag too. 
How big are the worms roughly? I'm afraid I don't know anything about turtles to know if they would be harmful to them.


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## aking2 (Nov 16, 2008)

the worms are thread like (or more like the thickness of a hair strand) white and about quarter of an inch in length i did another full tank clean today put gravel, rocks and filters were all washed in boiling water and the tank was also washed with near boiling water too but low and behold as soon as i refilled the tank with fresh water there they were again floating and swimming round the tank some were dead some still alive the little white bugs have gone (even gave the turtle a clean nd gently scrubbed his shell) just starting to wonder if they from his food as while emptying tank i also discovered some black snails hiding under the rocks i using the supa turtle food never had this bother when i used another brand nd no when i buy new fish i always keep them in seporate tank for a few weeks b4 they get introduced to the larger tank (just in case they got summit wrong) nd had no bother with worms then it just seems to have started since using the supa food


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## Tehanu (Nov 12, 2006)

The worms are likely to be Planaria (flatworms), harmless and simply cleaning up the excess waste and food (which is likely to be a factor in any turtle setup  )

The little white things are probably Ostracods ("seed shrimp") that flit around in the water, over the subsrate and again do no harm and occur in many tanks. 

Both are the most likely and are not harmful or anything to worry about clearing


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