chasesng

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Wife found a worm in our 12 gal tank when she moved a rock. She managed to pull it out with a mini plastic shovel. Working on a photo but based on our reviews on-line and in books, we believe it to be a fireworm. Working on photo of the little bugger in its new platic tupperware.

So now good doctors.....?

What's bad about fireworms? How impt is it to get rid of them? How do we do that?

Got the tank used few weeks ago. Rinsed it quickly and put in 2 inches of aragonite sand and LR; Added cleaner crew last week. Numbers are all pretty good.

Thanks
 

jhale

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Most fire worms and other bristle worms are good for the tank. In some cases you might get a species that grows too large for your tank.
They will eat waste and left over food I would not worry about putting him back in the tank, or sump, or fuge if you prefer.
 
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chasesng

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first...that was my wife calling you "jay"....not me. she took over while i was at kids hockey game.

second....thanks for the reference site. that's alotta worms. i dont think we've got the bad one because it eats corals and we dont have any. just live rock. and what we've caught (2 of them now and hunting a third) looks more like the linopherus photo.

we've also spotted (my wife is going crazy spotting stuff now) a pair of 1/8th inch sized "things' that look like mini, white, venus fly traps. one of them even seems to have 3 or 4 tentacles sticking out. they've attached themselves inside the web of one of the smaller rocks. they'll be hard to photo but she may give it a try later.

thanks again...steve
 
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jhale

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that's a scallop, very cool hitchhiker. they don't always live that long, but they are cool while they last. you might want to do some research into feeding the tank phytoplankton, I believe that's what they eat, they are filter feeders. without food they will just waste away.

culturing phytoplankton

Jay is fine, I usually just go by "j" :)

- j
 

Zoous

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I have something very simliar in my tank now. I would try to get rid of them because they multiple like crazy. I thought I only have three or four of them and didn't mind having them. But now I have like 50 of them in my tank.
 

jhale

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I think he means the worms.

If you want to get rid of them just offer them on the board, peeps will take them to put in the fuge.
 

Zoous

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Yes, worms. Upon closer inspection your pics is exactly what I have.

When I feed my fishes some of the food goes to the bottom and the fireworms all start coming out of the live rocks. No sand, bare bottom. I have many sizes baby ones, small ones, medium ones and one humogous one.
 
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KathyC

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Barnum Island
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Zoous - if you have that many, then more likely you are overfeeding the tanl. Bristleworm populations grow to the amount of food available to them, if you cut back on feeding, they will naturally lessen in numbers.
Also helps to have good flow in the tank as it's harder for food not eaten by your fish to get stuck in places the worms can find it ;)
 

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