Too many worms

[defcon11]

I have a ton of bristleworms in my tank. I know that they are beneficial and keep the sand bed stirred up and they also keep the LR clean on the inside. Awesome, I'm all about that. What I want to know is how many is too many and how big is too big?
I have a 29 gal with corals and fish. 20 lbs of sand and 30 lbs of LR.
Thanks for any help

 

[btldreef]

I pluck out the ones that I can see within reason. The big ones I always remove, they're just gross looking to me. I figure that I'll never get rid of them all, just keeping them under control. I've heard they breed pretty quickly.
It's totally a personal choice on this one...

 

[happyfeet]

They ate and killed my Jawfish, maybe not in that order.
I'd say remove as many as you can find. You will NEVER get them all.

 

[bang guy]

If you feel you have too many then you may be overfeeding. Detrivore populations are limited by the amount of food available.
On a side note, if you remove them manually they you have a big worry about what's happening the the detritus they used to be feeding on.

 

[btldreef]

Originally Posted by Bang Guy
http:///forum/post/3155932
If you feel you have too many then you may be overfeeding. Detrivore populations are limited by the amount of food available.
On a side note, if you remove them manually they you have a big worry about what's happening the the detritus they used to be feeding on.
I have a great CUC to compensate for that. I just think they're ugly and move the bigger ones I see. I barely have any in my tank anyways though...

 

[tjnitro]

What is the best way to remove them. I have seen the traps but should you use them or just pull them out? They can sting you if you use your bare hands right?

 

[btldreef]

Originally Posted by tjnitro
http:///forum/post/3155949
What is the best way to remove them. I have seen the traps but should you use them or just pull them out? They can sting you if you use your bare hands right?
I yank them out with feeding tongs. You just have to be sneaky about it sometimes, that's why I'm convinced you'll never get them all. Yeah, they can sting bare hands, had it happen once trying to feed a coral, NOT FUN! Left a mark on my hand for a week. The traps don't work, IMO, especially if you have any cleaners in your tank. I tried one in my 14G because it's so tight in there and I kept knocking things over trying to catch these little buggers. My cleaner shrimp and hermits would not leave the trap alone and then my fish got interested in it!

 

[defcon11]

cool, thanks for input. I left the tank with my friend for a couple months and it looks like he was overfeeding a bit. They just come out of everywhere now when I feed the tank. Heard using some nylons with piece of shrimp will catch some, wonder if anyone has had any success because those traps are really expensive.

 

[xcali1985]

Grab a sixline wrasse he will eat them. Also most dottybacks, careful when choosing a dotty as some are territoral and will make a area in the tank his.