Feather Duster Tube
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tangwhispr
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Sabellida worms, commonly called Feather Dusters, construct a leathery tube, sometimes up to 12 inches (30 cm) in length, from which they extend a single crown of multicolored feather-like filaments. In the wild, they are usually found buried in sand, not adhered to rocks. Their tubes are constructed of sand, detritus, mucus, and other bits of sediment. It is better to locate these worms near the bottom of the aquarium where this material is more plentiful. The fact that particulate matter is higher near the bottom of the aquarium and that they are not photosynthetic animals, are other good reasons to place them in this area.
They use their slime-coated filaments/tentacles or "feathers" as some call them, for respiration and to collect suspended particulate matter/plankton. The collected matter is then drawn towards the mouth area at the center of the tentacle ring. Solutions containing phytoplankton and/or zooplankton (rotifers) are recommended. These feeding solutions should be applied near and under the crown of feathers so it can normally be drawn up and to the beating cilia on the feathers. It should be noted these tiny hair-like extensions generate the current that draws the food supply into the feather-like head of the animal. Dispensing the feeding solution above the animal may cause the animal to retract with most of the feeding solution going to waste.
Feather dusters may lose their crown of "feathers" for many reasons, some being: poor water quality; being disturbed too often; or, lack of a sufficient amount of food. This does not mean they are dead as most will grow their feathers back in a month or so. If the head returns and is smaller, this is an indication the food supply is inadequate. Could be if this happens again and the head comes back again smaller, the tubeworm will die. Always wait a couple of months and if no reappearance occurs, feel the tube for the worm body inside. If there is some movement inside the tube, put it back and be patient for another month.
Family Serpulidae - Calcareous Tubeworms
Unlike the Sabellida Feather Duster worms, Serpulida worms form a rigid limestone tube. The Spirobranchus giganteus species is common in the Caribbean and a subspecies is found in the Central Pacific to the Red Sea. Their radioles or "feathers" form two spirals, each separated with a hardened operculum, a trapdoor-like device. There are several whorls of feathers in each crown. Their tentacles radiate from a central stem area with the largest near the base of the crown, narrowing to a point at the tip. Hence the name "Christmas-Tree." These colorful, yellow, red, white, blue, purple, green, pink, and combinations of, tube worms may have a crown up to 1 inch (2.5 cm) or slightly larger.
They are found in colonies attached to live rock. Those coming from the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean are the largest, having radioles about 1 inch (2.5 cm) in height. They do not exist in a symbiotic relationship with other corals as do the Indo-Pacific variety (Tullock, 1997). They may be kept in lower light and water movement than the Indo-Pacific variety.
As for those coming from the Indo-Pacific area, the Christmas Tree "worms" have a symbiotic relationship with live heads of Porites coral. It is thought the worms derive nutrition from the coral mucus (Wilkens, 1990). They require strong water movement and excellent lighting to maintain the Porites coral. Their radioles average a 0.5 inch (1.2 cm) in height.
As an added note, they reproduce sexually, as there are separate males and females. The males release sperm into the surrounding waters and if sensed by a female ready to spawn, she releases eggs. Embryos develop into a swimming larva within a few days. Ongoing culture is extremely difficult, as phytoplankton is needed for further development and I do not know of this yet occurring in captivity.
Also of interest is the tropical species' Neodexospirs' and Vermiliopsis pygidalis, which are the very tiny (2 mm) circular white hard-shelled feather dusters that appear in shaded areas, such as on pump bodies, live rock, and aquarium side panels. They are suspension feeders and often found in great numbers on these type surfaces.
And, last but not least, there's another very small family member, about 3 mm, and more snake-like in appearance that often shows up under live rock. They, probably Vermilliopsis and/or Microprotula spp., are elongated with a very delicate tube-like structure. These 'squiggly' shaped worms are detritus feeders.
Stolen from Saltcorner
They use their slime-coated filaments/tentacles or "feathers" as some call them, for respiration and to collect suspended particulate matter/plankton. The collected matter is then drawn towards the mouth area at the center of the tentacle ring. Solutions containing phytoplankton and/or zooplankton (rotifers) are recommended. These feeding solutions should be applied near and under the crown of feathers so it can normally be drawn up and to the beating cilia on the feathers. It should be noted these tiny hair-like extensions generate the current that draws the food supply into the feather-like head of the animal. Dispensing the feeding solution above the animal may cause the animal to retract with most of the feeding solution going to waste.
Feather dusters may lose their crown of "feathers" for many reasons, some being: poor water quality; being disturbed too often; or, lack of a sufficient amount of food. This does not mean they are dead as most will grow their feathers back in a month or so. If the head returns and is smaller, this is an indication the food supply is inadequate. Could be if this happens again and the head comes back again smaller, the tubeworm will die. Always wait a couple of months and if no reappearance occurs, feel the tube for the worm body inside. If there is some movement inside the tube, put it back and be patient for another month.
Family Serpulidae - Calcareous Tubeworms
Unlike the Sabellida Feather Duster worms, Serpulida worms form a rigid limestone tube. The Spirobranchus giganteus species is common in the Caribbean and a subspecies is found in the Central Pacific to the Red Sea. Their radioles or "feathers" form two spirals, each separated with a hardened operculum, a trapdoor-like device. There are several whorls of feathers in each crown. Their tentacles radiate from a central stem area with the largest near the base of the crown, narrowing to a point at the tip. Hence the name "Christmas-Tree." These colorful, yellow, red, white, blue, purple, green, pink, and combinations of, tube worms may have a crown up to 1 inch (2.5 cm) or slightly larger.
They are found in colonies attached to live rock. Those coming from the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean are the largest, having radioles about 1 inch (2.5 cm) in height. They do not exist in a symbiotic relationship with other corals as do the Indo-Pacific variety (Tullock, 1997). They may be kept in lower light and water movement than the Indo-Pacific variety.
As for those coming from the Indo-Pacific area, the Christmas Tree "worms" have a symbiotic relationship with live heads of Porites coral. It is thought the worms derive nutrition from the coral mucus (Wilkens, 1990). They require strong water movement and excellent lighting to maintain the Porites coral. Their radioles average a 0.5 inch (1.2 cm) in height.
As an added note, they reproduce sexually, as there are separate males and females. The males release sperm into the surrounding waters and if sensed by a female ready to spawn, she releases eggs. Embryos develop into a swimming larva within a few days. Ongoing culture is extremely difficult, as phytoplankton is needed for further development and I do not know of this yet occurring in captivity.
Also of interest is the tropical species' Neodexospirs' and Vermiliopsis pygidalis, which are the very tiny (2 mm) circular white hard-shelled feather dusters that appear in shaded areas, such as on pump bodies, live rock, and aquarium side panels. They are suspension feeders and often found in great numbers on these type surfaces.
And, last but not least, there's another very small family member, about 3 mm, and more snake-like in appearance that often shows up under live rock. They, probably Vermilliopsis and/or Microprotula spp., are elongated with a very delicate tube-like structure. These 'squiggly' shaped worms are detritus feeders.
Stolen from Saltcorner