Unknown creature coming out at night?

[IMPERATORFAN]

Anyone know what this is? I tried to grab it with pinchers and it rolled up into the shape of a stretched out acorn.

 

[duec22]

Make sure it's not an Eunice worm...they can get big and will start to eat things....here a good article.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-04/rs/index.php

 

[vessxpress1]

Probably a stupid idea, I've never seen one in real life but could it be a nudi branch?

 

[bertoni]

Sounds like isopod behavior. A search should turn up some articles, and there's the invertebrate forum, too.

 

[LeslieH]

That's certainly not a crustacean or a worm. Can you take a better picture now that you've got it outside of the tank? Put it in a shallow dish with enough water to completely cover it so all the appendages show & there's no reflection.

 

[IMPERATORFAN]

duec22: That's the first response I got in my local reef club too. I hope that's not it.

vessxpress1: Thanks for the suggestion. I don't think that's what it is, but then again, I have no idea what is?

bertoni: I've been looking into these. The shape is similar, but there are so many different kinds of isopods that it seems like an impossible task for me to ID it. This thing had small tentacles/poly looking things coming out of it's back similar to the ones you can see on the sides in the pic. They were just shorter. I can't find any isopod descriptions with that so far. Where's this Dr Ron character when you need him?

LeslieH: Unfortunately, it's still in the tank. When I went to get it with the pinchers, it rolled up into that acorn shape (even looked more brown/blackish like an acorn when it did that) and rolled back into a place in the rock where I couldn't get to it. I could've dived in with my hand, but this thing was just too damn ugly to touch at 3:00 am.

 

[divewsharks]

you can rule out a eunice worm.

 

[techigirl78]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6524123#post6524123 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by duec22
Make sure it's not an Eunice worm...they can get big and will start to eat things....here a good article.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-04/rs/index.php

No, not a eunice. Also, not all eunice worms are bad. I have had one about 2 years in my tank and it hasn't caused any harm, just scavenges. Granted, I do keep an eye on it.

 

[LeslieH]

Again, definitely not any kind of crustacean or worm. It could be a nudibranch (in which case it looks like an aeolid - one of the coral eaters), a hairy chiton, or? We need a better picture!