Bristleworms survive FW dip

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kelled2

New member
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I found these and a few more still alive after two fresh water dips with Lougols. I was suspicious of the rock having so many worm holes and no sign of anything exiting during or after the dips so I decided to frag the rock and this is what I found. After fragging all the Pallys off I left this large rock in the FW dip for more than twenty minutes and then broke it up and found more living worms inside
 
Why would you keep them in the tank? I had associated them with eating the polyps. That is why I was worried about them being there since the polyps were showing signs of being chewed up.
 
They don't/can't eat polyps. They can protect your tank against a nitrate spike that could kill your zoas.
 
HMMM, I must be confusing something somewhere along the line as I have had several colonies that had shown signs of being chewed or cut into and I have always found this type of worm living on the rock. I may be confusing the type of worm that it is however once I had rid the rock of the critter the problem had resolved. Now that I think back none of them were this large but they look the same. Could it be something else causing the damage?
 
Well I guess I am confusing the whole point with the type of worm that it is . My point is that if they can survive the FW dip twice since Saturday and then a 20 minute dip after fragging the rock how do you expect to free the rocks that come from the wild of unwanted pests be it worms or others?
 
Species shown below : Hermodice carunculata - This is the one species of fireworm that you do not want in your aquarium as it is a known predator of corals.

I understand that most are good however my concern is ridding my new zoo purchases of the bad inhabitants in the rocks that they come on. What is the best way as it seems that FW dip is not effective on burrowing animals. I have had numerous issues with worms eating at my corals so I do not differentiate Kill them all let God sort them out. I will take some heat for that but I am erring on the side of caution. Is it best to frag all the corals off of the rocks that come from the wild? Thus eliminating or reducing the introduction of predators. I am still learning at this hobby so forgive me if I am sounding ignorant on this subject. Just looking for answers to some of the problems I have had with my corals.
 
You can on the safe side chip of chunks of the rock where the zoos are at..

or can sometimes harm zoos if done too much or too long..

Furan2 dips... besides killing zoa pox might kill or drive out the worms from the rock... ( would do this at last resort. )
 
The problem with dipping to rid rocks of worms is that the worms will work their way into crevices away from the dip solution... If you only dip for 15-30 minutes, sometimes that is not enought to "saturate" the rock, and the worm can find its way to a safe place in some hole in the rock... Unfortunately if you dip for longer than that, it has a negative affect on the corals you are trying to protect...

I don't think that was a bad worm, but I don't really care for many bristle worms in my tank either... I think a few is fine, if they come out at night, then so be it, but if they start coming out when I feed, that is when I start yanking them out...

Dave~ You may have been thinking about a eunicid worm... They are terrors on polyps/softie's... One of my club members had one in his tank...
 
What then is the best answer. I have started fragging most of the wild zoos that I buy from the LFS as it is just not worth it to put a rock in my prop or display tank that I am uncertain of. The problem that comes up when I do come across that awesome showpiece rock with corals on it and I want to keep it intact. It does not sound as though there are any good solutions but if anyone has any good ideas LMK.
 
You can put a 6line wrasse in your prop tank. They will eat as much as they can find....

Others use bananna/yellow coris wrasse or green seagrass wrasse.. they also control other parasites such as flatworms/nudibranchs/pyramid snails... etc...
 
I have a six line in my prop and I am getting one for the display as well. I just broke up another rock that I got from the LFS on saturday. This rock has been FW dipped twice same as last one and quarantined. This is what I found upon breaking it up.

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<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10677429#post10677429 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by delsol650
pistol are ok.. that gorilla or rock crab def.. not good...
Click to expand...

Yeah... What he said... lol ;)
 
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