The Definitive Feather Duster Handbook

[rune]

We just got out first feather duster today and I have been trying to find some info on them. I searched these forums (as I always do) and wasn't able to find much in regards to the care of these guys. So I am calling out to you to help make this thread as informative as possible. If you know anything about feather dusters, please post that info here. Pretty soon we should have a pretty good feather duster care handbook! Please feel free to correct me if any of this is wrong. I'm posting it based on experience (what little I have) and internet research. I would link to sources here but I don't believe that linking outside of the forum is allowed.
Scientific Name: Sabellastarte magnifica
Origin: Tropical Pacific & Indian Ocean
Relative Size: Not Sure
Average Lifespan: Not Sure
Compatibility: Non-Aggressive - Some other fish will snack on them so be mindful. We watched our blenny attempt to rip the end off of our poor worm but he was fast enough to avoid getting hurt.
Preferred Temperature: 72-78 F
Terms:
Crown - The feathery part at the tip. Typically brown and white although it can be many colors depending on species.
Tube - the sleeve or casing that the worm lives in.
Acclimation:
I cannot seem to find much on the proper acclimation procedure for these guys. I do know that if they are extremely sensitive to water param changes, it may be best to drip them?
I do know that it is extremely important to avoid taking them out of the water as much as possible. I didn't realize this when we acclimated ours but I am hoping it did not cause too much damage. Seems that air builds up in their bodies which causes damage when they are exposed.
General Care:
When stressed feather dusters will shed their crown and may slowly grown them back over the course of several days to several weeks. They may also never grow them back if the cause of the stress is not found and corrected leading to their death.
Feather Dusters can leave their tubes but it is not a good sign. It has been said that a feather duster has a very low survival rate if seen out of it's tube and is not likely to survive 50% of the time.
Feather Dusters re-enforce their tubes by secreting a substance from their bodies which then binds with the substrate around them to create a protective housing.
Feather Dusters can be buried slightly but the tip or open end of the tube needs to remain above the surface. This is where the worm emerges to feed.
Feather Dusters are low maintenance but are extremely sensitive to water parameters changes. If you see your feather duster shed it's crown shortly after a water change it may be due to the rapid difference in parameters.
Feather Dusters do not use photosynthesis and therefore have no specific light requirements.
They are filter feeders and may appreciate moderate water flow.
Many have said they will feed their dusters Phytoplankton (either purchased or cultivated) or cyclop-eeze while others say that the leftover food and organisms in the water alone are enough.

 

[nordy]

Thanks for the post! I just got a feather duster about a week ago and it is doing great. I haven't fed mine yet, but will be feeding my corals tonight and will see how it responds to the sea squirt feeder filled w/cyclo and DT"s (my usual mix)
I just temp acclimated mine for about 15 minutes, then cut open the bag and let it fall to the sand. I later buried the tube in the sand, leaving a little bit of the business end sticking out. Pretty cool creature and it is amazingly quick to retract into the tube!

 

[arlene1995]

What an informative post!
I have a couple feather dusters. The first one I got I just temp acclimated it and stuck it in a crevice. It is now attatched and doing fine. The second is another story. The only similarity is my method of acclimation.
When it was removed from the LFS's display tank, the tube was ripped and the worm came out. It was partially attatched to the tube, however. When I got home, I laid it on the substrate and let it do its thing... Two weeks later, it has reconstruced some of it's tube and attatched to the back panel (not where I wanted it

). It opens daily and it seems as though it will make it. Amazingly, it did NOT drop its crown.
That is my story, so... Thanks for the post!

 

[t316]

Here's my contribution......
If you have Peppermint shrimp, and you add a feather duster, you will no longer have a feather duster, but your shrimp will be happy...

A Peppermint shrimp will totally consume a feather duster in under 5 seconds.

 

[rune]

Thanks for the responses! This info helps a lot - especially the part about the peppermint shrimp. The success stories give us hope.
I was going to edit the thread to add all the replies but it seems as though it's not an option after awhile.
Ours seems to be doing extremely well. We got him on Saturday and at first only buried about 50% of his tube (the part that had crushed coral substrate stuck to it) - He had a good 4 inches of tube sticking out of the sand. He seemed ok although a bit shy. Last night we actually reburied him and now only about an inch and 1/2 are above the sand. He has pretty much stayed out of his casing ever since and seems happy.. well as happy as feather dusters can seem to be.
I've also learned that FDs can be pretty hard to keep alive in some situations. They are filter feeders but do seem to need photoplankton to stay alive. Not sure how true this is but they say if he sheds his crown and then regrows it smaller he may not be getting enough food.

 

[salt210]

I had a feather duster once, but no one told me that it would be food for my puffer and angel. I took him back to my lfs. don't know if it survived tho. it had shed its feathers.

 

[bacchuslvr]

Thanks for the Post! I've also done searches and have found very little. I buried the foot and the worm buried its self further (I've had it for 2 weeks now). One curious thing it's done... for some reason the tube is being cut shorter by something. It's not a vertical cut, but more of a 'trim' so it makes me think the worm is doing it. The only other thing in the tank, that I know of, that could do it would be my hermit crabs or my cleaner shrimp... though I highly doubt they are the culprits. Other than that, the feather duster seems happy.

 

[salt210]

bacc
that sounds exactly what was happening to mine by my angel and puffer picking on it. keep an eye out to see if something is picking at it

 

[bacchuslvr]

Thanks salt210. I'm stumped as to what it could be though. It happens at night and during the day, nothing bugs it. The only other inhabitants are a six-line wrasse (which 'sleeps' at night), 2 false percs, pincushion urchin, cleaner shrimp, and various hermits and snails! Other than the feather duster doing it, the only other thing could be a hitchhiker I don't know about!!! AH! The other thing is that the cut seems smooth, not jagged which I would suspect with one of the crabs or shrimp. Hhhhmmm...

 

[arlene1995]

bacchuslvr, when I placed my 1st feather duster, its tube was longer than needed. Since then, it has shortened its tube so that it ends on the rock it is attatched to. Hope this helps!

 

[bacchuslvr]

Thanks Arlene! I think that's what it's doing. It seemed after it settled it's foot it was sticking up fairly high out of the substrate. This morning I noticed it cut a 3rd section down. There is little information out there about feather duster's, and what is never mentions 'shortening' their tubes, just building them. Thanks for the info!

 

[alix2.0]

Originally Posted by T316
http:///forum/post/2727257
Here's my contribution......
If you have Peppermint shrimp, and you add a feather duster, you will no longer have a feather duster, but your shrimp will be happy...

A Peppermint shrimp will totally consume a feather duster in under 5 seconds.
+1 ive seen it happen.

 

[girlina4x4]

There are four feather duster families:
Family Sabellidae - Tubes are made of a relatively soft material, which may be very flexible or about as stiff as cardboard. Sabellid worms range from quite small to quite large. The biggest are over 36 inches long, with tentacle crowns over 5 inches long. In the aquarium world, these are the animals commonly called "feather duster worms", although the other families have similar feathery crowns. Some smaller species reproduce asexually very well in captivity, forming large colonies.
Family Sepulidae - Tubes are made of calcium carbonate and are often attached to rocks or other substrate material. they frequently have a doubled crown of tentacles, sometimes forming a doubled, tapered helix. They often have an opperculum, or plug, that fits into the tube and seals it when the worm has withdrawn. In the aquarium world, these are commonly called "hard-tubed feather dusters", "Christmas tree worms", or "Coco worms".
Family Spirorbidae - These diminutive worms live in small tubes often found attached to the rocks or growing on the sides of the aquarium. The tightly spiraled tube is seldom over 0.2 inches in diameter. The tentacle crown is bright red or red-orange, but is clearly seen only with magnification. they are common and reproduce well in captivity, but are probably never intentionally purchased.
Family Sabellaridae - Tubes are made of cemented sand or other substrate grains. The tentacled crown is generally smaller and less brightly colored than in the other famlies. The individual worms seldom exceed 4 inches in length, but collectively they may form reefs of cemented worm tubes that are hundreds of yards long and up to 66 feet high. These worms are seldom seen in captivity because the aggregations of tubes are simply too difficult to break for the animals to be easily collected. However, individuals may enter tanks attached to live rock.
I got this info from the book "Marine Invertebrates" by Dr. Ronald L. Shimek..... one of my fave marine books (extremly informative, contains over 500 species)

 

[t316]

Originally Posted by Girlina4x4
http:///forum/post/2728134
There are four feather duster families:
Family Sabellidae - Tubes are made of a relatively soft material, which may be very flexible or about as stiff as cardboard. Sabellid worms range from quite small to quite large. The biggest are over 36 inches long, with tentacle crowns over 5 inches long. In the aquarium world, these are the animals commonly called "feather duster worms", although the other families have similar feathery crowns. Some smaller species reproduce asexually very well in captivity, forming large colonies.
Family Sepulidae - Tubes are made of calcium carbonate and are often attached to rocks or other substrate material. they frequently have a doubled crown of tentacles, sometimes forming a doubled, tapered helix. They often have an opperculum, or plug, that fits into the tube and seals it when the worm has withdrawn. In the aquarium world, these are commonly called "hard-tubed feather dusters", "Christmas tree worms", or "Coco worms".
Family Spirorbidae - These diminutive worms live in small tubes often found attached to the rocks or growing on the sides of the aquarium. The tightly spiraled tube is seldom over 0.2 inches in diameter. The tentacle crown is bright red or red-orange, but is clearly seen only with magnification. they are common and reproduce well in captivity, but are probably never intentionally purchased.
Family Sabellaridae - Tubes are made of cemented sand or other substrate grains. The tentacled crown is generally smaller and less brightly colored than in the other famlies. The individual worms seldom exceed 4 inches in length, but collectively they may form reefs of cemented worm tubes that are hundreds of yards long and up to 66 feet high. These worms are seldom seen in captivity because the aggregations of tubes are simply too difficult to break for the animals to be easily collected. However, individuals may enter tanks attached to live rock.
I got this info from the book "Marine Invertebrates" by Dr. Ronald L. Shimek..... one of my fave marine books (extremly informative, contains over 500 species)

Well I must have had the one that smelled like Victoria's Secret, because my Peppermint Shrimp devoured it like it was a Ribeye steak....

 

[110innc]

got this info from the book "Marine Invertebrates" by Dr. Ronald L. Shimek..... one of my fave marine books (extremly informative, contains over 500 species)
Not trying to thread jack but anyone that doesnt have needs to get it.

 

[cranberry]

I love Ron..... he's like my invert idol!!

 

[lovethemfish]

Ive got four feather dusters and a coco worm in my tank, and My 3 pepperment shrimp have never bothered them at all. Also when I first got my fd's most of them lost their crowns but grew back within about 3 weeks.

 

[sueandherzoo]

I bought a feather duster on Thursday and so far my peppermint shrimp hasn't bothered it - at least that I can tell. Nothing says it won't happen but for now they're amicably sharing the 12-gallon tank.
Someone above said that the FD's never move on their own - does that mean not at all? The spot where I put him was in an opening in some live rocks and this morning he is deeper down (his crown is flush against the rock rather than having an inch or two projection and his "foot" is hanging out the back of the rock more than I had placed it. If they don't move at all on their own then I'm wondering if something was tugging on him from the back, like the Peppermint Shrimp?
Sue

 

[bacchuslvr]

SueAndHerZoo- When I FINALLY had mine place where I wanted him, he did 'move' into the substrate... I have mine at the base of my live rock. I think he was placing his 'foot' since it was above the substrate, then most of the worm ended up buried.