Peppermint shrimp vs bristleworms

[taricha]

Short version: my tank's clean up duties have been in large part carried by bristleworms.
I recently added more traditional CUC members including a peppermint shrimp. Several times I have watched the shrimp devour bristleworms. I am definitely seeing a big reduction in my bristleworm population.
I have a lot of sand but not a DSB and the worms work the sand all the way down (I can see worm activity through bottom glass from under my tank stand).
So, who would you guys go with? Remove the shrimp and let the worms do their thing? Or keep the shrimp and live with whatever small population of bristleworms can avoid being eaten and let some other detrivores increase to fill the gap.
I think the peppermint shrimp are more attractive than bristleworms, but the bristleworms work the sand and rocks very thoroughly, and I keep the sand because I like the look, and I love all the interesting critters that live in it.
What do y'all think?

 

[hotelbravo]

thank you for posting this i have been noticing a decline in my beloved bristleworm population aswell and i recently added two peppermint shrimp to get rid of an aptasia outbreak which they did a fantastic job at but if your right and they are eating bristleworms then im going to remove these shrimp tonight. i would much rather have bristleworms than shrimp. the worms can reach many places the shrimp cannot and imo are a much more valuable clean up crew

 

[taricha]

When I feed the tank the bristleworms and shrimp come out to eat. I've seen it go both ways: I've seen the shrimp go past a worm to grab flake, I've also seen the shrimp ignore flake to devour a worm.

 

[theGrimPeeper]

As far as the Aiptasia and Peppermint shrimp go, My only experience with a Peppermint Shrimp is that it didn't eat the pest, however I might have had the wrong kind. I have been debating on going with shrimp or Berghia Nudibranch...Any thoughts?

 

[Umbra]

The nudis are certainly more reliable Aiptasia consumers but unless you farm some for them in a separate tank you're left with the dilemma of the nudi starving to death after it runs out of food.

 

[rt67ghy]

I would keep the shrimps because they're so cool. I wouldn't worry about the bristleworms because they multiple so rapidly and they'll be in places the shrimp can't get them. Think of it as healthy competition. The shrimps will keep the worm population in check and get free food in the process.