bristle worm overpopulation

[customanimalart]

Okay, so I have a 12g nano that is OVERPOPULATED with bristleworms. I have hand picked some big and small out with some tongs. Man are they hard to catch.
However, when I pull one out, I find several more.
Is there a way to get them out quickly, or destroy them without killing my clown, mandarin and corals?
Or do I just need to buy a worm trap and keep it in there daily?
What a mess this is. They don't seem to be causing obvious damage to anything, just a bit creepy to see.
They are everywhere!!!
HELP!!!:eek2:

 

[customanimalart]

Nevermind as I read on WWM (wet web media) that they are actually beneficial scavangers.
Feel free to post any other thoughts on this matter though, as I will be back to check. Thanks

 

[grav]

I have a few thoughts:

I'm worried about a mandarin starving in a 12g tank. How are you doing this?


These worms like most scavangers repoduce more, the more waste there is for them to feed on. The best way to reduce them is to cut back on the amt of food going into the tank, or do things to improve the filtration system.

They are not harmful at all as you have already found, but they are not the prettiest girl at the dance either.

 

[benray4fun]

Cash'm in at your local fish store...."they'll give you credit for sure," cause they can always be sold. You have a farm...lol

 

[GSMguy]

oh my god you can not sell bristleworms tell me who buys bristleworms? i am sitting on a frigging fortune i can afford to retire now

 

[benray4fun]

There's always someone willing to buy'm..."hell I just bought an order from indo-pacific this week...baby bristle worms" So go figure!

If you have bristle worms in your system it's a good sign, just like pods... Now if you have to many, just call your lfs and cut a deal.
You can probably get store credit and buy something else..."I do it all the time"...lfs's always need their stores stocked with something to sell.

 

[customanimalart]

My mandarin is doing great. He has pods he eats as well as his daily diet of Ocean Nutrition formula 1 marine pellet.

He gobble them up like crazy. I have a ton of copepods that are located in the back sections of the tank where I put a bunch of small bits of live rock. The large adults like to live in the sponge filter as well. They are all over the place.
The Mandarin is doing great! I got very lucky with him eating this food. I wasn't aware of the diet issues until after I got him.

Now that I know the bristle worms are not a problem, I will cut the feeding back so they will stop producing so much.

Here in the near future we are planning to take our vacant 55g and make a reef tank. I am ready for the challenge. So is my son, it was his idea. He is 19 so he had better help out with the maintenance too!

Thanks guys!