My 2 foot Eunicid Worm

brizzo · #1 03-23-2009, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snaz

Those things freak me the hell out. I'm a big guy and I love bugs and spiders and good ole fashion Hollywood gore but something about Euncid worms give me the big willies.

I agree 100% ... Picture #3 gives me the heeby jeebies.

untamed · #2 03-23-2009, 05:14 PM

I think they are interesting detrivores, and much of their bad reputation is just hype related to how they look. Like lots of other things, keeping these depends on what else you want to keep in the tank at the same time.

The largest one I had was probably 2 feet long and was a vegetarian. Another, was maybe 16" and did have a taste for Xenia (which really isn't a problem, and might be a solution for some people). I used to hand feed the smaller one. Sadly, something else in the tank ended up getting the better of the smaller one. I suspect that a fish got the worm, not the other way around.

I find the "eeww" reaction to be very odd. It just isn't in me to look at a critter from that point of view.

Samw · #3 03-23-2009, 06:19 PM

I can't say for sure that this worm preyed on small fish at night. However all of my small gobies dissappeared over time. Also, something took a bite out of my baby Hippo tang earlier this year. 20% of its body was completely bitten off overnight and I don't think it was from one of my other fishes. I didn't think the tang would survive but given how healthy it was from the start, it survived and has healed 100%. I wish I had taken pictures to show the before and after of the fish to see how amazing the bite and the recovery was. I don't know what else in the tank could have taken that bite. I have seen this worm carry rocks around its cave like they were nothing so it is not hard to imagine this guy grabbing a sleeping fish. I have also lost all of my ricordia and zoas. I feel more confident about buying new corals and gobies now. If I buy a new Ricordia and zoas and they stop getting eaten, and if I buy new gobies and they stop dissappearing then I'm pointing my finger at the worm.

Snaz · #4 03-23-2009, 06:25 PM

I think if I saw one in real life and was able to watch it move I would be more comfortable. All I have seen of this creature is the spooky pictures and descriptions of it moving very fast and eating babies.

If I can see it then I can "catalog it" and thus probably not be such a wuss whenever you guys post pictures of this thing.

christyf5 · #5 03-23-2009, 06:40 PM

I had one and it made very expensive snacks of all of my zoos and ricordeas. Eventually I hauled them all out to a nano and made short work of removing its lair in which it was also using various SPS frags to shore up its front door. Awesome time had by all upon its removal. I was across the room at the time

Samw · #6 03-23-2009, 06:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snaz

I think if I saw one in real life and was able to watch it move I would be more comfortable. All I have seen of this creature is the spooky pictures and descriptions of it moving very fast and eating babies.

If I can see it then I can "catalog it" and thus probably not be such a wuss whenever you guys post pictures of this thing.

Do you want me to take a video of it moving in a bucket?

Its very difficult to take video of them in action in a tank because they only come out in the dark.

It does look like an awesome creature to keep in a species only tank. I noticed that it makes a huge amount of waste. My container water is full of crap and is all yellow over a few hours.

untamed · #7 03-23-2009, 06:52 PM

IME, they typically keep their tail ends deep inside their burrows and extend out to grab something to eat. Upon grabbing whatever, they retreat QUICKLY (blink and you'll miss it) into the burrow. I think they would prefer to take items that are small enough to disappear right inside, but you might also see something pinned up against the entrance.

Also, they don't poop in their burrow...Every now and again you will see the forked tail stick out of the burrow for a quick poop! They have no problem doing a U-turn along the length of their body within the confines of their tunnel.

I suppose the point is, you rarely or never get to see the entire worm at once. In fact, to this day, I really don't know how long my largest worm actually was. At least 2 feet, but maybe more.

untamed · #8 03-23-2009, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samw

I can't say for sure that this worm preyed on small fish at night. However all of my small gobies dissappeared over time. Also, something took a bite out of my baby Hippo tang earlier this year. 20% of its body was completely bitten off overnight and I don't think it was from one of my other fishes. I didn't think the tang would survive but given how healthy it was from the start, it survived and has healed 100%. I wish I had taken pictures to show the before and after of the fish to see how amazing the bite and the recovery was. I don't know what else in the tank could have taken that bite. I have seen this worm carry rocks around its cave like they were nothing so it is not hard to imagine this guy grabbing a sleeping fish. I have also lost all of my ricordia and zoas. I feel more confident about buying new corals and gobies now. If I buy a new Ricordia and zoas and they stop getting eaten, and if I buy new gobies and they stop dissappearing then I'm pointing my finger at the worm.

If you've seen them eat (as I have many times), they have an awesome set of jaws that only become visible just before the grab...but those jaws are kind of like insect mandibles/pincers. They are well designed for "grab and hold", but I just can't see how they would be able to remove any large section of a fish. Certainly not in a single bite. I suppose if it could get a hold of a fish for an extended period of time, it might be able to repeatedly regrasp and leave a good wound when the fish finally escaped.

Shimek has a good article on them at the bottom here:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-04/rs/index.php

Samw · #9 03-23-2009, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by untamed

If you've seen them eat (as I have many times), they have an awesome set of jaws that only become visible just before the grab...but those jaws are kind of like insect mandibles/pincers. They are well designed for "grab and hold", but I just can't see how they would be able to remove any large section of a fish. Certainly not in a single bite. I suppose if it could get a hold of a fish for an extended period of time, it might be able to repeatedly regrasp and leave a good wound when the fish finally escaped.

Shimek has a good article on them at the bottom here:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-04/rs/index.php

Yes, I read that many times and considered putting this quote earlier.

"However, the largest Eunice individuals seen in nature are impressive predators. Individuals have been reported to strike upward from the sediment surface, grab a four-inch long fish swimming above the sediment, pull it under the sediment and presumably snack on it at its leisure."

"They generally appear to be harmless scavengers, however, even I, a self-proclaimed vermophile, would consider them amongst the "usual suspects" if some small fish such as fire fish or small gobies disappeared without a trace."

Mine isn't large enough to grab a 4" fish. But I bet it could grab a dime size hippo or a neon coral goby while they are sleeping. My dime size hippo tang was really tiny and wouldn't take much to take a chunk out of it but I can't see another fish doing that during the night when it occured. I'd like to err on the side of caution. In addition, all of my blue tangs in the past would sleep in the rockwork. This guy sleeps near the surface or near algae but never in the rockwork. Thought that was unusual.

http://www.reefs.org/library/aquariu...98/0198_2.html

"Eunice aphroditois , a common eunicid polychaete. Although many species are omnivorous scavengers, the majority of species in this family are predatory, and their pharynx (muscular jaw apparatus, described in the original article on polychaetes) is equipped with a complex set of jaw plates capable of crushing small prey. "

justinl · #10 03-23-2009, 09:33 PM

Ive always been a fan of annelid worms myself, but I know they can cause problems. congrats on the removal, hope you got the culprit of your tank troubles. I can't remember where I read it, but I've heard of accounts of these worms striking at fish and chopping them in half from the speed and power of their jaws.