Help! Worm thing on snail?

[corylover5]

I was watching my Mystery snails eat some algae wafers when I saw a worm like creature suctioned onto one of their shells. I took the snail and pulled the worm like creature off with tweezers. It is now in a small container of water. It is small and brown. It is squirming around a lot and it suctioned onto the tweezers and it took a while to get it off the tweezers. It looks flat and it seems to be changing shapes from a long strand to bunching up in a little ball. I will post a picture tomorrow but I'm really scared there will be more of them and they will harm my fish.

 

[corylover5]

I'm suspecting it came from the Hornwort bunch I got from Petco today.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Yes, pictures will help us identify the creature.

 

[corylover5]

Here are some pictures

 

[corylover5]

It is still in a little cup of water but yesterday I tried picking it up with tweezers from inside the cup. When I picked it up with tweezers it latched onto the side of the cup and it was hard to get it to let go.

 

[FishGuest5123]

It’s a big one.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

It could be Planaria. Sort of looks like it from this thread: Hitchhikers In Freshwater Tanks & Ponds

 

[corylover5]

At first I thought it was planaria but it doesn't have an arrow shaped head. Can planaria suction onto things like snails and plants?

 

[Essjay]

If it is suctioning onto things, is it a leech?

 

[corylover5]

I'm not sure if it's a leech. It is suctioning onto things though. It looks like it can suction onto things from the front of it and the back of it.

 

[FishGuest5123]

If it was planaria it would have a pointed head in the shape of an arrow.

 

[Essjay]

If it can attach itself at both ends, it sounds like a leech. That's what it says in this thread, though the link under leeches no longer works.

 

[corylover5]

I think it is a leech. It looks exactly like this https://www.google.com/search?q=sma...79#imgrc=dhQq6l2KL5Uv4M&imgdii=I9BX6hWWOk1a4M
I'm pretty sure it came from the Hornwort I got at Petco yesterday.
Is there a good chance that there will be more of them? I did a 50% water change and I didn't see any more of them.
If there are more that I find how can I kill them?

 

[PheonixKingZ]

A leech was my second guess, as soon as you said it latched onto the tweezers.

Is there a good chance that there will be more of them?

There may be, look around. This one most likely came from the plants you just got.

 

[corylover5]

I don't see anymore but if I do find more how do I get rid of them?