are there blue bristle worms?

bill109

Active Member
hey i found a blue worm and it had white little hairs on it like a caterpiller. the first thing i thought of was bristle worms..?
 

cranberry

Active Member
Yes, they a bristleworm, just a different variety. I find these more aggressive and will play tug-o-war with food.


And their bristles will stick ya more easily than the regular variety, so be careful. I can bounch a regular BW in my hand and it won't do anything.... this guys get ya when ya just brush against them.
 

bill109

Active Member
o wow, thanks for the info, i looked online and couldnt find a thing.
that is wierd tho, i havent ever heard anyone saying anythign about these little guys.
i foudn one by accident and was very surprised.
it does look like it could hurt..
 
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pasphotography

Guest
How crazy I just found one of these guys in my tank the other night and hes HUGE! Hes about 1/2" wide and 4" - 5" long and solid blue gray from tip to tip. I took him out and have him in a big glass til I found out if hed be doin any damage.
Thanks for the post.
 

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by PASPhotography
http:///forum/post/2793916
How crazy I just found one of these guys in my tank the other night and hes HUGE! Hes about 1/2" wide and 4" - 5" long and solid blue gray from tip to tip. I took him out and have him in a big glass til I found out if hed be doin any damage.
Thanks for the post.
throw him in the sump. it will eat detritus no?
 

cranberry

Active Member
They do hurt more than the others but are just as easy to dissolve in vinegar. That finger is my husband and I made him keep the bristles until I got my picture... I'm such a good wife :)
If I see one of these or the pink psychedelic ones that are very similar in size, I remove them to the freezer. They are too strong for my liking. Some of the published experts call them fireworms, albeit they are not thee fireworm, the Hermodice carunculata. I never use to see these guys posted for ID purposes but peeps in the last year have started putting up pictures of them all over the place. They've become quite "popular", it seems.
If you fail at an attempt to remove them it may be awhile before you get another chance.... they don't go for the same tricks twice very easily.
 

bill109

Active Member
Originally Posted by Cranberry
http:///forum/post/2794436
They do hurt more than the others but are just as easy to dissolve in vinegar. That finger is my husband and I made him keep the bristles until I got my picture... I'm such a good wife :)
If I see one of these or the pink psychedelic ones that are very similar in size, I remove them to the freezer. They are too strong for my liking. Some of the published experts call them fireworms, albeit they are not thee
fireworm, the Hermodice carunculata. I never use to see these guys posted for ID purposes but peeps in the last year have started putting up pictures of them all over the place. They've become quite "popular", it seems.
If you fail at an attempt to remove them it may be awhile before you get another chance.... they don't go for the same tricks twice very easily.
i have one, i rarely see bristle worms. i planned on leaving it? hjow much harm can they do?
could they take down a fish? or sting or ruin a coral?
 

nuzz

Member
bill109,
They are generally peaceful and are GREAT scavengers/cleaners. However an infestation can get pretty ugly. I'd leave him unless you notice him start to damage your corals (unlikely I'm told).
My husband and I have at least a dozen in different areas of our tank and they keep to themselves pretty much. In our 23-gal tank, it's comfortable. However I have
seen infested rock and not only is it disgusting, but that can pose a threat to the other life in your tank.
I know of two ways you can catch/eliminate them:
1. Take out the rock it lives in and dry it out. That'll kill it - but this way can be a pain in the butt especially since I've noticed they like to live close to the ocean floor, aka your base rocks lol.
2. I've heard you can take the cut end of a pantyhose, stick a bit of fish inside it, tie a knot in the open end, and set this somewhere on the bottom of your tank. They will burrow into the pantyhose to get to the fish, but won't be able to burrow back out.
Careful not to touch them - it's like getting stuck by a cactus.
Again unless you have a severe infestation of them, I'd leave them be. If you've got one, you've likely got several more. They're nocturnal and most often come out at night, or at feeding. They're part of your cleaning crew and a good thing to have around :)
Kara
 

cranberry

Active Member
Originally Posted by nuzz
http:///forum/post/2803042
They are generally peaceful and are GREAT
scavengers/cleaners. However an infestation can get pretty ugly. I'd leave him unless you notice him start to damage your corals (unlikely I'm told).
I beg to differ on this one. These blue ones are not like the "regular" ones. Some of them look a lot like Eurythoe complanata, which we can't rule out from afar, and you don't want them in your tank if they are indeed that variety.
When in doubt, yank it out.... where these guys are concerned (IMO).
The "regular" ones, I seed all my tanks with them except the seahorse tanks.... great critters.
 
A

alexmir

Guest
i bought 15lbs of LR for my new nano, and have seen TONS of the blue guys crawling, along with lots of astrea stars, various baby brittles, and also 4-5 medium britles. I have yanked out 5 of the blue bristle worms, each is around 4 inches long,and stillhave alot in the tank.
Iwill continue to yank them out until i dont see anymore!!!!!!! (i leave the tiny red ones, but these guys are toobig, i see them fighting for food, and i would hate for one to harm my little clown
 
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