what is this?

T

tran901

New member
**i'm talking about the worm looking things...the pinkish white ones**

this is in my friends tank...i don't know what they are but this weekend they are in the clam shell and in some corals. they seem to come out only at night. when she takes pics with the flash on they go away..

any help would be awesome!!

thanks!

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thats what i thought they were..but something has killed the clam, a couple corals, and a black clown fish...trying to figure out what
 
Looks like there is a lot of conflicting information out them about them (then again there are 10,000 different kinds of bristleworms). One source indicated they can kill fish, corals, etc. and they can multiply quickly...so if everything was doing okay, them maybe they are alright, but if things are coming up dead....I would get them out ASAP!

Here is a source that would seem to support the idea they need to go:http://saltaquarium.about.com/cs/msubpestbworm/a/aa102198.htm

The name "bristleworm" is a label loosely applied to describe all Polychaete class marine worms, but it is members of the Fireworms Amphinomidae family that have earned the name of being what most aquarists consider to be "true" bristleworms.
Primarily it is the Pherecardia (Pacific), Hermodice (Caribbean), and other related species that one needs to be concerned about. These Fireworms are errant (roving) carnivores that can cause much damage in a reef tank. They bare toxic bristles on their bodies that can inflict a sting of a very painful degree, posses strong jaws for feeding, and can reproduce quite rapidly.

They are not selective about what they eat, but usually prey on all types of other motile (moving) and sessile (attached or stationary) invertebrates, such as corals, crustaceans, mollusks, sedentary type as well as other errant type bristleworms. Being particularly aggressive predators, they may even eat small fishes, if an opportunity presents itself.
 
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Well I have a quite a few in my tank (you couldnt get them out if you wanted too) and have never noticed a problem with them.
Maybe Ive just been lucky :)
 
VitalApparatus said:
Well I have a quite a few in my tank (you couldnt get them out if you wanted too) and have never noticed a problem with them.
Maybe Ive just been lucky :)
Click to expand...

sounds like some are good and some are very bad.....only 10,000 species so you got one of the good guys.....but I am not sure you could find any buyers at the frag swap...lol
 
Come to think of it,you took home a great big chunk of cheato out of my fuge where there are thousands! lol Yup sounds like there are different kinds.
 
Those bristle worms are harmless detritivores. They might irritate a clam mantle by touching it, but they're beneficial overall. An over abundance, like pictured, is usually indicative of a nutrient problem. The ones you should worry about are the related Polychaetes sort of collectively known as fireworms that are predatory.

I'd be more concerned about the water quality.
 
VitalApparatus said:
Come to think of it,you took home a great big chunk of cheato out of my fuge where there are thousands! lol Yup sounds like there are different kinds.
Click to expand...

Well I looked at pics of a bristleworm and a fireworm and many of the species look very similar, so I would recommend that you do the fullproof method and count their legs. A bristleworm has 124 legs and a fireworm has 122....so just yank a few out and count them....wonder why they call them "fire"worms? Anyway, count a few and let me know as I am curious.....http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/userpix/47_Bristleworms2_2.jpg

Well your infested cheato went into my sump and not my tank. Sounds like some reefers desire them, so maybe yank out a couple hundred and sell them at the frag swap.....bristleworms $1 an inch. Jabo may trade you some of his mantis shrimp for some bristleworms. I hear they are a lot of fun too:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
 
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well i went up to her shop today and this is what i found out...nitrates were as red as lipstick and her salinity was at 1.035 as my refractometer read...so we did a water change and gonna do a test in the morning
 
Come catch "Willie" my mantis and you will not have any more bristle worms. I would also lay a fresh $100 in your hand for taking him!!
 
tran901 said:
well i went up to her shop today and this is what i found out...nitrates were as red as lipstick and her salinity was at 1.035 as my refractometer read...so we did a water change and gonna do a test in the morning
Click to expand...

I figured water quality was the issue. The tank is really green. Is it overrun with aiptasia as well? It looks like it'll take a lot of water changes and elbow grease to get things where they need to be.

If it were mine I might just scrap everything but the livestock and start fresh. Too bad your friend didn't have more guidance in the beginning.
 
Jabo are you saying you will pay me to take him??
Ill build him a habitat with the 100$ if you're serious and he will be loved :)


LOL - Rudolph your humor is always welcomed in the morning :)
 
VitalApparatus said:
Jabo are you saying you will pay me to take him??
Ill build him a habitat with the 100$ if you're serious and he will be loved :)


LOL - Rudolph your humor is always welcomed in the morning :)
Click to expand...
:wildone:

Jon (or is it John?): I think Jabo's problem is catching it, not just finding it a good home. He has put a bounty on its head, so it is wanted dead or alive (your choice). He could put a hurtin on those bristleworms for u. If fact, I just looked it up again, and saw it can even break aquarium glass http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/aprilholladay/2006-01-09-shrimp_x.htm

I don't know about you, but that is not a skill I look for my tank...."When mantis shrimp dig on the seafloor and run into an obstacle, they strike it to try to break it and remove the obstacle, says Caldwell. So, typically, when an animal starts digging in an aquarium corner, she encounters glass. This "usually leads to their whacking the glass, chipping it, and just causing a leak." A few mantis shrimp though, over the years, have shattered the aquariums. "This usually happens when they attack their reflection or when they try to hit a teasing finger waving at them through the glass."

but when Jabo makes smartbutt comments toward me, the thought of his pet crustacean does brings me a sense of joy....lol
 
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Most of the Bristle worms you see are harmless. They strictly eat dead matter. Something else killed your organisms and they were cleaning up. Now if you have a lot of them, IE you see them during day time, you feed to much. Bristle's will never out populate their food supply. Every tank has them, no matter "who or what" you got to control them. Yes there are dangerous ones, but they really aren't common. You might have another predator , or your extremely high salinity killed your inverts.

Algae isn't bad, it's just unsightly without control. Elevated Nitrate's can cause problems but rarely kill anything. SPS don't do as well with high levels, but most things can weather through it.

Get on top of water changes, that's the most important thing to do. Bring your salt level down, add some cleaners, control you feedings, turn up skimmer to be a little wetter to pull out more. If you feed frozen, I recommend, rinsing it, take a small brine shrimp net after you have defrosted you food, and rinse under cold tap water till it runs clear. Re add the food to water and feed normally. Those un eatable particals that are frozen with the food just become nitrate sources.

Hope this helps some.
Chris
 
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