Enchytraeus albidus - Or White Worms to You and Me
By Gerry Hawksby
From the October 2003 Ryedale Reporter Magazine, Ryedale Aquarist Society,
Yorkshire, England
Aquarticles
White worm is just one of at least four types of worm which we as aquarists can
culture, on a regular basis, in order to maintain a continuous supply of one of the best
kinds of live food our fish could wish for.
Whilst it does involve a little extra work in its cultivation it is, to my mind, one of
the most valuable aquarium foods available. Not only is it very nutritious but also one of
the best foods to bring fish into both breeding condition and egg production, however, as
with all good things, there is one drawback in that white worms do have a high fat content
and therefore should not be fed too frequently to your fish or else they will suffer
degeneration to certain vital internal organs.
Personally I restrict feeding white worms to no more than twice per week, which in turn
does allow other occasions on which this form of live food can be fed, alongside favourite
types of dry foods, to my fish. I am a firm believer in the fact that my fish benefit from
as varied a diet as I can provide on the basis that in their natural environment fish will
not restrict their feeding to one particular type of food. They simply have no alternative
but to eat anything that is available and their food source(s) may thus have to vary from
season to season. The one staple food, if I can call it such, will be algae on which most
species will browse.
Let me now describe my method of cultivation for white worms:
A wooden box is the ideal container, the size of which is not important. It only needs to
fit with your available space. Naturally the larger the box the stronger the eventual
colony of worms will become. Half fill the box with loam or ericaceous compost, but do
ensure no fertiliser has been added. The compost should now be moistened but not saturated
with water. We now place the box somewhere where the temperature can be maintained in the
10 to 15 C (50 to 60 F) range.
Our starter culture of worms can often be obtained from other Society member, or
occasionally through Open Show auctions, however our best source may be to obtain them
from a dealer's advertisement placed in an aquatic magazine. Sadly I have found local
aquatic outlets (North Yorkshire, England) no longer stock these cultures for two main
reasons: -
1. There is no call for these worms from the vast majority of aquarists who either don't
have the time or, most likely, don't want to become involved in maintaining the culture.
2. Temperatures in local dealers are not condusive to keeping these cultures thriving, so
why should they invest time to feed and maintain several small containers of white worm
culture that will either fall away or they are not going to sell?
Without straying too far from our subject the above is also true about another favoured
live food of the more experienced aquarists - tubifex worms, now only available from
specialist dealers. Just two more instances of the 'use it or loose it' syndrome.
Most dealers do stock a range of frozen foods however which are much less hassle and
can be kept almost indefinitely in a freezer but, for whatever reason, white worms are not
included in the varieties available within the U.K. A lot of today's fishkeepers seem
happy to accept this alternative as no extra work is involved. Presumably this is what we
now refer to as progress.
Being a member of the 'old school' I prefer the adage 'if there's no pain there's no
gain'. For the little extra work involved I am convinced that fish prefer and benefit from
live foods every time. To prove my point I suggest you purchase a sachet of live bloodworm
and see which of its contents your fish take first. I'm prepared to wager that any of
these worms which show no signs of movement will be left over until all the active ones
have been caught and consumed.
At this stage I've got to say that all of the major dry food manufacturers assure us
that their foods incorporate all the necessary ingredients to ensure our fish are being
maintained in the best possible condition as regards health and conditioning prior to
breeding. I have no reason to question or doubt this assurance, but I must also
point out that most of my fish were raised on several types of live foods in their fry
stages, i.e. infusoria, microworms and brine shrimp, and did not see dry foods until
reaching adolescence. Although most of my young fish would adapt to taking dry foods, some
(mainly killifish species), never did.
Now before I digress completely let's return to the job in hand:
Having obtained your starter culture, introduce this into the centre of your box and feed
about a 1" square slice of crustless white bread which has been soaked in water. Now
cover the compost with a sheet of glass to help prevent the compost drying out and,
finally, cover the box with either a piece of wood or hardboard in order to afford the
worms total darkness. The container should now be left undisturbed for about a week to
allow the worms to become established.
A brief daily inspection will indicate how quickly the bread is being eaten. When all
signs have gone then its time to introduce another piece of bread, but do not overfeed.
The quicker the bread is eaten the larger the replacement piece of bread needs to be. As
the number of worms increase so you can start to collect them from the underside of the
glass. This is done with the aid of tweezers, cotton buds or human fingers. Unless the
worms are covered in either soil or a food medium, in which case(s) they are best soaked
in water first; they can then be fed directly to your fish without need of sterilisation
etc. From this point on you should have a constant supply of worms available.
As a footnote let me say that some sources recommend soaking the bread in milk, but I
would not do so as the milk tends to turn sour quickly, especially during warmer weather,
and as a result the worms will cease to feed. I have found that white worms will take
Ready Brek (a finely ground oat cereal) mixed to a smooth paste with water, but never feed
more than they will eat in three days. After this time remove any uneaten food and
replace with a new supply.
Often highlighted in aquatic magazines etc. is the fact that white worm cultures will
become infested with small flies. There is no certainty that this will happen with your
culture, but should this turn out to be the case the first indication will come with the
spotting of little white eggs upon the surface of the culture. On occasions these flies
fail to flourish and die away, but where this is not the case you will need to rid them
from the culture by way of soaking the culture with water. As the flies begin to die they
float upon the water surface and are easily removed. The culture must then be allowed to
dry, which is often helped by placing the box slightly upon its side.
Finally, and on the subject of drying, we must never let the compost dry out completely
as this causes the white worms to dehydrate and die off.
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