Unknown worm

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Posted 4/11/2012 3:35:20 PM


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I'm posting two pictures of this type of worm I keep finding in my sand. I was finally able to catch this one. I've seen them for the past month or so but they are hard to find and when I try to catch them they quickly bury themselves in the sand until I can't find them anymore.
So a couple questions:
1. Do you know what kind of animal this is?
2. Is it harmful to my reef tank (corals, polyps, anemones, crabs, fish, etc.)
3. If it is harmful, how do I get rid of it and what will it do to my tank?





Thanks.


60 gallon - 1 Buenos Aires, 9 Red Serpae, 6 Pristella & 2 Black Neon Tetras, 9 Longfin Blue Danios, 2 Julii Leopard Corys, 1 Rainbow Shark (6 inches, 8 years old), 1 Pictus Catfish (4.75 inches, 1 year old)
30 gallon - 2 Comet Goldfish (5.5 inches each, 10 years old), 1 Blue Lobster (3.5 inches, 1 year old)
20 gallon - 5 male MM Platies
5 gallon - 1 male Halfmoon Doubletail Betta
Post #233426
Posted 4/11/2012 9:15:39 PM


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That's a bristle worm and totally harmless. It's a scavenger.

Like snails in freshwater, if you overfeed, these worms can over populate and look ugly in the tank.


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Post #233430
Posted 4/12/2012 6:33:39 PM


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A cool looking thing.

Mr. Miracle Grow” for aquarium plants

Help those in our hobby to exceed beyond their expectations. 

 

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Post #233435
Posted 4/12/2012 8:12:23 PM


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regular old bristleworm. dont grab them, the white things are venomous spines. also if they get too much food they get BIG.

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Post #233437
Posted 4/13/2012 8:33:16 PM


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After Katorin said they were bristle worms, I looked them up and saw pretty bad pictures of the stings. I'm glad I was never able to catch them with my fingers.
I've only seen a couple here or there and they don't seem to be bothering my animals so I'll leave them for now and just keep my feeding in check.
Thanks again for the help.


60 gallon - 1 Buenos Aires, 9 Red Serpae, 6 Pristella & 2 Black Neon Tetras, 9 Longfin Blue Danios, 2 Julii Leopard Corys, 1 Rainbow Shark (6 inches, 8 years old), 1 Pictus Catfish (4.75 inches, 1 year old)
30 gallon - 2 Comet Goldfish (5.5 inches each, 10 years old), 1 Blue Lobster (3.5 inches, 1 year old)
20 gallon - 5 male MM Platies
5 gallon - 1 male Halfmoon Doubletail Betta
Post #233445
Posted 6/1/2012 2:30:29 PM


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If you are concerned about them over populating the tank, add a coral banded shrimp. They eat bristle worms

Calgary Aquarium Society

Aquarium Medics

My Community Tank

Growout for Swordtails

10 Gallon Experiment
Post #234058
Posted 5/22/2013 12:51:14 PM
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Bristle worms might look beautiful in tank when they are small. But they grow really fast and big and then they are a real trouble. Never try to catch them with your bare hands as they are toxic. Also in the normal light they keep hiding and come out only in darkness or in red light. So it becomes difficult to catch them.

Best solution for their removal are traps. Traps can be bought from stores or can be home-made. I feel home made traps are the best. The concept is to bring the worms in a place where they can enter but cannot leave. They are attracted to traps using food.Various type of home made models can be made. The difference has mostly to do with their size. You may want to start off with a small model and if that does not seem to work, upgrade to a larger one. Since you will be using very inexpensive materials (actually mostly food jars) the cost of changing is just about zero.

Another manner in which to change and see if you can trap the animals you want out of the aquarium, is to change the food stuff you place inside the container that is used as the trap. That often is better than making an new trap. Sometimes the type of food has a great deal to do with whether or not worms and other animals will enter the trap you set up.


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