Hitchhiker ID - Long Skinny Fish

[Pipip]

Can anyone tell me what this is? It didn't look friendly, so it's in a bucket right now:

It's about 3 inches long, and swims like, well, sperm, I guess.

Last night, a mantis shrimp took a chunk out of a cucumber. He didn't die immediately, so I left him in there overnight to see if he would recover. He was dead this morning, and this fish that I took out of the tank was poking at him. Not sure if it's a scavenger or a predator.

Thanks!

 

[AquaKnight]

It's a Pearlfish. Not sure where the name came from, as this fish, well.... This fish lives and eats inside the anus of sea cucumbers.

 

[LPS_addict]

Wow that is something I have never heard of. The strange things that come from the see. So is it harmful? Did it come out of his cucumber because it died? I am very curious of this thing. Kinda creepy lol

 

[AquaKnight]

Yea, it left the cucumber because it died. Without a cucumber to host, the Pearlfish will likely die from starvation. They are nearly blind, and find the cukes by smell. I would imagine it's only harmful to cukes, which don't have the best track records as it stands.

 

[Pipip]

wow, thanks for the quick reply. I'm still amazed at the kind of stuff I'm finding in the tank

 

[liverock]

Can anyone tell me what this is? It didn't look friendly, so it's in a bucket right now:

It's about 3 inches long, and swims like, well, sperm, I guess.

Last night, a mantis shrimp took a chunk out of a cucumber. He didn't die immediately, so I left him in there overnight to see if he would recover. He was dead this morning, and this fish that I took out of the tank was poking at him. Not sure if it's a scavenger or a predator.

Thanks!

Pretty rare critter here in the Gulf. Years ago I collected the large cukes from the Gulf and the keys for the BBC...they were doing a documentary on pearl fish....I sent about 25 cukes, some a foot and a half long over the pond.....but not one of them had a pearl in them...or if they did they did not make the trip....or the folks on that end did not resourcefully keep them alive....never heard anything else from them....

Richard TBS
www.tbsaltwater.com

 

[Pipip]

A foot and a half long cuke - nice! I've heard people actually eat them - bet those would have been worth a lot at some of the more exotic restaurants

 

[helix149]

not harmful to the cukes but they keep disgusting living quarters by human standards If i had one I would be amazed and put it back in the tank hoping one of the other cukes host it but its ultimately up to you

 

[noahm]

I have one, or had one (haven't seen it for many months). It would occasionally come out at night and poke around. They seem to be nearly blind as it really didn't react to my flashlight at all. The consensus on whether they harm their host or not is unclear, but seems to be pretty benign as far as the actual research goes. Wierd stuff though. Neat find.