Those long, thread-like, multiple red 'spaghetti worms"

[Anonymous]

You know the things I mean, they live either in holes in the rock or in the sand. They capture small food items and retract back. Does anybody know if they can sting? Reason I asked is one of my acan frags (I had epoxed it to a rock above) let loose and landed fleshy side down on an area where those things are. It was down maybe 10hrs before I found it, and when I did I noticed severe tissue rescission, and it for all the world looks burnt/stung. There is no other coral near it, it didn't land on anything else, and the only thing I can think of that could have done the damage was the worms. When I picked it up the worm was expended all on the coral. I am hoping the coral rebounds :?

Any thoughts?

 

[iseeweed]

you mean the tiny white, tube worm looking things with a red feather duster looking top?

 

[Anonymous]

No, they don't build a tube at all, but in the sand they will pull bigger bits of shells, etc. towards their base and build a mound. When they settle in rock they wedge themselves in a crevice or hole. I couldn't get a good pic of the ones in my tank but here is one I found on the web:

 

[Anonymous]

I have the same things in my tank. I've wondered the same thing.

B

 

[Ben1]

My tank had alot of them at one point and I never saw them bother any coral directly. I never had any corals lay upside down on one of the worms though, so who knows maybe they do sting? Hope your Acan pulls through!

 

[Anonymous]

as far as I know they dont sting, however, being the oppurtunist type feeder(anything their tentacles can attach to) I imagine that the acan being face down over its tube, was like a thankgiving day feast and it was simply pulling pieces of flesh off the acan for lunch...

 

[Anonymous]

Well, I'm hoping the acan recovers, and I accidentally found out how to remove one from the rock. I was siphoning out flatworms with some tubing and sucked it right out of the rock :twisted: the critter was a lot larger than I thought it would be.