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View Full Version : Reeeeally LONG WORM in a 20 gallon tank


GoFish
01-27-2013, 06:58 AM
ID please... if someone knows
The worm in the image appears to be 2.5 inches long, and has only come out about 3" total until tonight... I fed my 4 fish something different tonight (bits of squid, shrimp and scallops) which really seemed to turn this bugger on. It normally just pokes its head out once in a while (i've seen it 6 times in 4 months but tonight it made its way down to the sandy bottom and crawled along the glass... ITS 14 INCHES LONG!!! And only 1/8" wide max

I doesn't have any bristles, only L-shaped yellow legs and it body is red/orange with yellowish bands, I dont see any eyes or mouth, it just appears to taper (though I'm not saying it doesn't)

Should i keep or kill? Thanks in advance for anyones time!

http://s14.postimage.org/lkapnchmp/photo.jpg

My apologies in advance for not posting this in the inverteb column. I'm new and couldn't figure out how

mrhasan
01-27-2013, 07:02 AM
Whatever it is (bristle or something); I would say its too big for a 20. Better pull it out.

mohammadali
01-27-2013, 07:05 AM
use it for fishing lol
i took 3 about 5" from my 20g tonight

Nasoblond
01-27-2013, 07:09 AM
I would get it out asap...I had a couple in my tank and they got to be over a foot long and only found them when I took the tank apart.........they only get bigger and could become an isssue later on.

lockrookie
01-27-2013, 07:10 AM
It's just a bristle worm nothing to worry about they scavenge the tank remove if you like I'm sure there are more in there

GoFish
01-27-2013, 07:26 AM
If it was a bristle worm wouldn't it have bristles? I know it's not the best photo, but it has distinct rounded L shaped legs that move like a millipede. I have a bristle worm in the tank and they look like totally different species :question:

I'm sure trout would love it! But the trout aren't feeding right now in my area, and I don't really wanna put it on a hook until I know if it's safe to touch

lockrookie
01-27-2013, 07:59 AM
My apologies it's not a Bristol worm but a fire worm. recently there was an I'd on my local forum and bayside corals id'd it as a fire worm. They are similar but a fire worm packs a bigger punch when it stings you. Still a good addition as a clean up crew

Corbin
01-27-2013, 08:05 AM
My apologies it's not a Bristol worm but a fire worm. recently there was an I'd on my local forum and bayside corals id'd it as a fire worm. They are similar but a fire worm packs a bigger punch when it stings you. Still a good addition as a clean up crew

^

GoFish
01-27-2013, 08:09 AM
Nope.....no hairs, bristles, fibers, or WHY. Does anyone actually know?

ScubaSteve
01-27-2013, 08:59 AM
It is of the bristle/firework family. I know it doesn't have the bristles, but not all of them do. Could potentially be from the eunicid family based on the setmntation and "legs" but I can't really tell from the pic.

Proteus
01-27-2013, 12:55 PM
It is of the bristle/firework family. I know it doesn't have the bristles, but not all of them do. Could potentially be from the eunicid family based on the setmntation and "legs" but I can't really tell from the pic.

+1

But if it bothers you trap it. I'm sure there's more though. Population is dependant on food source.

GoFish
01-27-2013, 07:30 PM
it "appears" to be the only one as i usually spend about 1/2< hr looking at the tank each night...
I found... this (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1506331), ....seems to be the closest thing i've found perhaps i will remove it if possible, but itslinks forward and backward really quickly

Xadieu
01-27-2013, 07:45 PM
My friend moved one of his live rock in his sump and later at night he went to check his sump and this is what he found...

http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o788/Xadieu1987/photo_zpsa179f4ee.jpg

http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o788/Xadieu1987/photo2_zps3f8770bf.jpg

reefgirl189
01-27-2013, 09:51 PM
My friend moved one of his live rock in his sump and later at night he went to check his sump and this is what he found...
http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o788/Xadieu1987/photo2_zps3f8770bf.jpg

I swear I've seen that creature like that in one of my nightmares before.

Xadieu
01-27-2013, 11:18 PM
It is deff not fun seeing something like that while admiring your tank on a Sunday night with a beer in your hand.:mmph:

carriej
01-28-2013, 01:02 AM
I found a HUGE bristleworm in my tank the other night while feeding the fish. It just kept coming and coming out the sand I never thought it would end.

Aliens must have put it there; because my tank is only three months old. LOL kidding.. Musta came from the live rock.

Anyway I took it out with some tweezers, put it in a bowl and scared my husband with it.. lol... I thought about letting it live in the sump but I just wasn't comfortable with that thing tramping around anywhere. It had to die.

RIP alien bristleworm.

Xadieu
01-28-2013, 01:30 AM
Haha I would put it in the sump and feed it every night to see how long I can grow it.

GoFish
11-06-2013, 04:18 AM
Re-Uping this thread as it's been 10 months and never did update as to what happened. The worm was definitely a Oenone Fulgida, not sure if there's a more common name. One night i watched this worm come out of it's hole and attempt to take out a blue legged hermit crab. It crawled under neath the hermit and injected some sort of stringy dart into the underside of the crab as it crawled away i could see a small strand as the worm tried to pull the crab back toward it. Most certainly a predator. I tried catching it several times, most often comes out at night only and is light and vibration shy, which makes it difficult to sneak up on. As i had mentioned earlier in the thread, they are EXTREMELY FAST. I eventually got fed up and took the rock out and placed it into the oven at 350 for an hour, BYE BYE!

Then...about 2 weeks ago i bought live rock and livestock out of another canreef members tank. The purchase also included a very large turbo snail. A week after the purchase and transfer to my second tank i can see the turbo on the sand bed with a sneaky worm working his way inside the snails shell! It turns out i have another one :(
I don't have a photo of this one but its more cream/brown colored with yellowish legs. Similar to this...
http://cdn.saltwaterfish.com/9/9c/525x525px-LL-9c1e00ca_vbattach221157.jpg
Round 2, FIGHT!

http://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/353167/removing-oenone-fulgida-worms

If anyone sees these hitchhiker worms in their tank, I'd highly recommend following the link and instructions provided and attempt to catch it, unless of course you don't mind dead snails and hermits.

My very large Turbo Snail as of yesterday has succumbed to his injuries RIP :(

Aside from killing your CUC they will however devour a large amount of wasted food in one sitting such as silversides, aside from the gross slime i guess that's a good thing