crayfish "Red Lobster"

[btowntaz]

Ok, I bought a crawfish the other day. He has settled in and eating well. But my wife noticed, what look like tiny worms attached to his shell in various places. Has about 5 or 6 of them. Been tough finding any info on them. They don't look like they bother him at all. I just don't need to have them spread to my beloved Red bellied Pacu. And I don't think he would take kindly to me trying to yank them off. I will post a picture. It is between and just above his eyes.

[btowntaz]

Pacu pic

[btowntaz]

Crayfish pic

[GEV83]

Nice Crayfish. Nice Pacu. My previous crayfish had those when I got him but they disapeared after the first molt. I had him by himself though so dont know if they are harmful to fish never did find info on these little critters.

[OrionGirl]

Are these worms, or just clumps of hair-like stuff? I see what you are referring to, but if the remain fixed in place, I don't think you have anything to worry about. Parasitic worms wouldn't transfer from a crustacean to a fish--most are obligates, with a specific life cycle. Since crawdads and pacu don't share native waters, it's unlikely that a parasite could utilize the fish.

Many crustaceans have algaes/critters that attach to the shells. Not actually a parasite, they just grow on the exterior, hitching a ride, basically. If this is the case, they will go away with the first molt.

[btowntaz]

Thank you for the help. I finally found some info about them. And you were right. Non-harmful hitchhikers. Here is what I found if anyone has the same problem.

" They are a type of worm, or Annelid, a commensal organism, meaning that they live on, but do not harm the crayfish. The specific scientific name for these are Branchiobdellida. They are members of the leech family. There is more specific data on the net, just type commensal worm in any search engine."

Thanks again.