Have i killed this giant worm?

[Mightyfish]

I noticed many months ago that there is a giant pale red colour worm crawling around rockwork. It is like a 60 cm long it has a round smooth head. So far i havent had any coral or fish got eaten so not sure what type of worm it is. I saw it the other day and took a picture, unfortunately didnt capture its head to ID it. It can retract really quick. I used a pair of scissors and cut its body. Have i killed it? Will it grow back like starfish?

 

[TigeBell]

Could that be a tiger tail sea cucumber?

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=497+502+712&pcatid=712

 

[OrQidz]

is it segmented? There are some worm experts around these parts I think...you might try posting in the hitch hiker forum as well. With a lot of worms, cutting them in two equals making two worms but I'm no expert. It sounds like a large creepy worm in any case, so I don't blame you for being suspicious of it.

 

[julie180]

Its not a cucumber if it "reacts really quick"

 

[Mock]

Unless he has a "defined" head, I wouldnt worry, If he has mandibles and a real head, then he would be suited for eating corals, snails, what not. If his head inst defined like a fireworm, it should be fine. I have a very large bristle worm in my tank that just eats when the tank is fed and seems to be quite content in just one rock. He doesnt bother anything. If you cut him in half, you will most likely get two of them now.

 

[Kyle461]

What happened to the other half when you cut it? I'm assuming one part wriggled back into its hole. Did the other half scamper off as well?

 

[MJV0103]

that is a giant worm, 2' long....wow

 

[Jason S]

It is hard to say from the pic. Is it segmented? Does it have legs like a centipede? is one end sometimes fatter than the other? What does it's head look like?

I have heard of some types of peanut worms getting that big, and Eunicids can get that big as well... Just hope it is not the latter

Edit: I just noticed you mention it's head is round and smooth. If it is not segmented, I would say it a large type of sipunculid worm.