Bristle worms

True Percula

New member
Hi,
I was wondering how do i get rid of all these bristle worms in my tank i know they can be an advantage but they are soo creepy for me...If anyone wants it i can catch like 5 for you..Please tell me how to make all of these worms GONE!!
 
Buy an arrow crab or grab a tweezer and hand pluck them. I just leave them alone, as much as they creep me out.
 
They are pretty creepy, and I come from the south, where the poisonous ones made it into the hobby---but the benign ones really are an asset: they get into places that most nothing else is going to go and clean out detritus. One arrow crab is an answer, however.
 
Sixlines eat bristle worms? Cool and I just thought it was pretty and ate parasites. This is like the bionic fish!
 
Just make sure a sixline is a good fish for YOUR tank. Certain tankmates can be bullied to death by the sixline, like mandarins for example.
 
We bought a bristle worm trap that works well. You put a small amount of food in the middle to attract the worm. The worms can get in, but they cant get out. We caught over 20 small bristle worms using the trap in 3 days. The large ones never paid any mind to it though.
 
I bought the same green trap and I cant catch one worm.

jenlovesty: Did you lay the tube down flat on the sand? My tank is a 12" cylindre so the trap wont sit flat.

I even left it over night and I didn't catch anything... And I can see them all the time... Little pink bastards!

So you are all saying that they are not bad for the tank, but I have heard that they will eat corals and anemonies? Is there any truth to that? If they are really harmless I will probably let them hang out!

Thanks,
Friend
 
I have heard that Bristle worms can become really big. They can become greater than 6" in length. And I heard that they never had a problem with the worm eating any corals.
They do recommend if the worm is greater than 6" to preferably take it out of the tank. If it's 6" or less you shouldnt have a problem. The worms will actually help keep the aquarium clean. :)
 
There are certain species that have been known to eat polyps and such; however, you more than likely do not need to worry about these as they seem to appear rarely in the hobby.

Also, some people will recommend a coral banded shrimp, or pair of them, to help maintain your bristleworm population. I didn't have any luck with mine hunting them down, he just scared all my fish and wouldn't let anyone on the left side of the tank.

I did have an arrow crab, he worked great. It was pretty gnarly to watch him take a worm in his claws, twist it out like a wet towel and eventually start plucking it to pieces. Sounds mean, but it was quite enjoyable to watch at the time.

A homemade trap that I made was fairly successful, but I also "caught" a lot of my nassarius and blue legs in the process. I used the panty hose method. You place frozen food in the hose, tie it and weigh it down to the sandbed. Place it in the tank overnight and it should attract bristleworms. They get stuck in the hose and after a few nights of doing this you'll have a nice collection of bristleworms to give a fellow reefer, or to do with as you please.
 
man i have 1 sucker thats more then 6" in length in my tank. he hasnt done any damage yet, hes really good at hunting down uneaten food, im seeing him grab up small pieces on the sand alot that was missed.

i think there pretty cool, not creepy , but thats me. lol
 
I have hundreds in my tank and Friday I saw a huge one eating some clove polyps. I tried all weekend to remove the larger ones and took out about 25 small to medium ones. There is still the large one that ate the coral in there. He he smart and will not come out for me to grab him. I would estimate him at least 1/2 inches wide and at least a foot long. Never seen the entire thing!!! I have seen him eat the gravel before!!! How can I get him out without taking the tank apart??? Please help. I recently slowed the feeding down because someone said I was over feeding and I assume this is why he is going after the corals. I also had some zoos disappear!!
 
Back
Top