Cobwebs on clams?

[matt 76]

The last few weeks on both my crocea and teardrop maxima I have had some sort of web looking junk hanging off of the sides of the shells. It seems to really irritate the clams as well as me....maybe more so me. I'm looking for a solution before these kill my clams. I also have a derasa that does not have these. Here are some pics.

This clam used to look really nice,now it seems to be shriveled up.

 

[LeslieH]

Better scrape them off no matter what they are. The strands look like string hydroids which have a strong sting.

 

[matt 76]

not sure I've ever heard of any thing like that. I took them out and scraped off some tube looking things. I hope this will take care of things. Cause my clams are lookin sad.=(

 

[Packersfan21]

It sounds like vermatid snails (I think that's how you spell it). They are harmless for the most part but can get caught in corals. I would use a turkey baster to get them off. You can also use tweezers to get rid of them.

 

[TheH]

vermetid snails. I only remove them if the calcium-tube is close to the top and interferes with mantle expansion.

If you remove them, be sure to "file" off the base with your tweezers. You should visibly see a small amount of fleshy material wash away into the water. Otherwise they'll just be back in a few days.

 

[finsurgeon]

Vermitid snails. I deeply regret the month or 2 that I could have crushed my first one, but didn't, thinking that any non-harmful living thing in my reef should get a chance. Now I have 80 to 100, and have seen significant losses of some corals as well as blockage of growth or spread to others. They are not harmless, and I strongly recommend that you use a screwdriver or a toe-nail cutter to break the shell or scrape it off, then smash or kill the small black "worm" inside. If you just break the mouth or the first centimeter or so, the "worm" part will recede then be back immediately. Just do it! -Bob

 

[crvz]

I've had them in my tank for years without really causing any noticeable issue. Most of the time the corals just encrust their casing, but the worms continue to put out their webs regardless.