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ID's Please One Coral-One Worm

qwik

qwik

I can use some id's please first was bought as unknown pally's I know there not pally's but dont have a clue. The take mysis and anything else that sticks on them.
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second picture is this worm,sloppy green arrow points at it. It lives in my micro dendro colony and steals food. Stealing food doesn't bother me, I just dont knowm if thats all it does ? An id and behavior would be great ,thanks Paul
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Phyl

Phyl

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Looks like a eunicide worm. The mere thought of it gives me heebie jeebies. Remember that HUGE worm from Oregon Reef? That's the same kind. I had one that was about 14" long. *shudder*.

The first one looks like a dendro to me. Where did you get it?
 
qwik

qwik

Oh no not heebie jeebies , ;D ;D, What does it do ,should I be worried ?
I picked up the coral off another reefer who posted it for sale as unknown white pally . I thought it looked like dendro so I took a shot for $15.
 
JohnS_323

JohnS_323

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
I'll go with duncans and eunicid also. The worm we had never did any real damage, we thought, so we left him alone. Then one day we came home and found our Welsi brain looking in obvious distress. The thing was torn up in the center with long fillaments coming out of the hole. In the center of the hole was the eunicid chowing down.

I've seen them on documentaries where they invade coral colonies, like frogspawns, typically on the hunt for small shrimp or pods living inside them. If you can get it out, do it. It may never do anything wrong but I think you'll be much better off without it.
 
magic

magic

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
The first one the head definitely looks like a duncan but the stalk doesn't. Stalk is hard where the one in the pic looks soft.
 
R

rodstar

I agree it looks like a duncan.

but, i don't think that is a eunicide worm. I think it is a peanut worm and they are harmless. I have a ton in my tank. Watch it. Peanut worms don't have a lot of bands, they are more smooth and they can stretch out really far, almost like telescoping but again, without bands. They are usually locked in place deep in the rock and don't move around. You typically see them at night coming out and stretching to get detritus. They come in all different colors. Mine are typically tan to brown, but I have a few that are speckled similar to the picture in this link: http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-04/rs/index.php

That link also provides some good info.
 
Z

Zhenya

I have no idea as to what species the coral in question is, but the worm in question is definitely not a peanut worm (Sipunculan) as I can make out setae along the body walls that is visible in the image. Sipunculans do not have that feature in their anatomy, also, it would be very helpful to see a better shot of the head of the worm. Eunicid worms have distinct 5 tentacles on their heads. All Eunice worms have them and it is one of the characteristic features.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-04/rs/index.php

And yes, I think if you could remove it I would suggest to do it now while it is still small. ;)
 
qwik

qwik

Thanks to all for the responses . I think Zhenya is right on the worm ID ,it looks like the Eunicid from the link, now to catch it and move it to the fuge . It says that they are basically scavangers so the fuge is the place for it. I cant take a chance that it might get curious about the taste of the corals. Thanks again all, Paul
 
Hawkeye

Hawkeye

hey paul - fwiw, I am pretty sure I have a couple eunice worms - and they - so far - are pretty peaceful scavengers. It is a really really big species group and the risk is the ones (however rare) that grow really big. From what I read - they do not attack corals, but eh...go for fish. Not good either. Plus the overall ugliness factor. My wife would make me toss the tank if she knew a worm could grow up to be 4 feet in length.

oh and phyl and john also voted eunice...gonna give em kudos if that is the id...honestly I looked at the pic and my initial reaction was - I can't tell without a clearer head shot.

Good luck!
 
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