bristleworms

[Keen]

has anyone seen aggressive bristleworms attacking their snails before? I just got a bunch of new turbo snails from the fish store, and within a few days, bristleworms have killed half of them. I have read that arrow crabs are good at eating brsitleworms. does anyone know anything that is better than that? or does someone have an arrow crab I can buy/borrow?

[howdy20012002]

generally bristleworms don't eat anything that is alive IME.
Could it have been that the snails were dying and then being eaten?
did u properly acclimitize them? Snails can take a few days to die off if they weren't acclimatized properly.

[Beverly]

I also have something killing and eating snails in our 120g. Never see the culprit as I think whatever it is attacks at night. Only see the dead snails partly eaten the next morning, then a few days afterward, there's nothing left of them.

I know we're not dealing with an Oenone worm (http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-04/rs/index.php)because there is no slime covering any of the snails.

Snails have been with me for months in various tanks before amalgamating them into one back in August, so acclimatization isn't the problem.

[Bob I]

During the summer months I go away for a week at a time. During that time I feed the fish using an automated feeder that dispenses flake food. I have a Falco Hawkfish that does not eat dry food. Interestingly enough I have no more Bristle Worms. Even at night using a flashlight, I see none.

[howdy20012002]

another way to get rid of them is feed the tank some shrimp of some sort and then physically remove the worms.
I have to do this every so often with my seahorse tank.
I use a pair of forceps
Hope this helps
Neal

[hummer]

I've tried using an arrow crab but it doesn't work. The arrow crab ignores the bristleworms almost all the time. I've only seem it eat a bristleworm once. But I think it caught it by accident crawling on the bottom of the aquarium. Most of the time the bristleworm gets scared back into their hole. I tried forceps as well but the worm breaks in half when it tries to escape. I also heard that a six line wrasse or foxface might eat them. What I've found most effective so far is a bristleworm trap. It's a green tube that opens on either end and a compartment in the middle to put food. I've caught many this way. I hope this helps.

[surgeonfish]

I have bristleworms and don't think they cause any harm. My foxface and sixline wrasse don't touch them. Do you have hermit crabs? I have heard they may eat the snails and take over their shells.

[mark]

Picked up some LR that was loaded with brisleworms and tiny starfish. Population seemed about the same for months until I added a 6-line, now rarely see either. Pods seemed to have disappeared as well but 6-line's looking well fed.

As for the brisleworms though, never seen them bother anything, think all the negative about them a overrated.

[howdy20012002]

I agree about the benefits.
Bristleworms are great for cleaning up uneaten food
I have lots in my invert tanks and have yet to see any of them kill anything.
I honestly think the snails had died and the bristleworms were just eating the carcasses.

[Keen]

here is a comment i found on a site
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.

[CMarty01]

I believe there are about thousands of types of bristleworms, so its really going to depend which ones you get. Some will destroy your reef and others will help clean up uneaten food. I'd say if you find corals or snails being eaten then set a trap and get rid of them, otherwise leave them be.