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Posted in Composting Worms Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

Small Brown Worms in Vivarium are Likely Helpful Benefactors

“I recently found tiny brown worms on the cucumber in my vivarium”, states this reader in her submission. “Do you know what this is? And is it harmful? I’m in the UK.” Now, the creature in the image is so tiny and nondescript that it really could be any number of things, though our best guess is that it is not a harmful worm, but one of the many that can occur in a vivarium that serve to break down the organic matter inside. The fact that they are eating the cucumber would suggest this, and for that reason, they are likely beneficial to the vivarium. Of course, we do not know if the vivarium contains any animals for which the cucumber was intended, and in that case, we understand that our reader is concerned, in the case that the worms are harmful to eat (some species of worms can contain diseases, pathogens and/or parasites).