Bristle worm ate my brittle star

brwneyedangel82 · 08/05/2013, 04:18 PM

So I went to see how my tank was going and there was this brittle star that I had plan on keeping all out in the open and I had the light on. I'm like why is out like that I thought they hide until its night. Come to find out that he was out cause the bristle worm was eating him and he was trying to get away. The bristle worm even had a piece of its leg in its mouth and the brittle star kept trying to get away and it look like half its body was missing. This bristle worm seemed pretty huge. I just got this lr in my tank almost 2 weeks ago no fish yet. Tank still cycling. Are bristle worms known to do this eat brittle stars and if so I don't want these in my tank. I liked the brittle star. Pretty sad its gone and it sucked that it had to suffer like that.

maddmaxx · 08/05/2013, 06:13 PM

ive never heard of that honestly. first thing that came to mind is that the bristle star was dying originally and the bristle worm was doin what they do by eating dying or dead organisms. you said the worm was kinda big? if its abnormally big id remove it honestly. but if its a nice size bristle worm but still "small" per say, id leave him in the tank. they are good janitors and usually eat left over food, waste, dying or dead corals. again, never heard of them attacking a bristle star like that

brwneyedangel82 · 08/05/2013, 06:47 PM

Yea we are planning on removing it it does seem way bigger then the others. The brittle star reappeared, so I'm not sure it may have just bitten off a arm or something. How can I remove it I see traps and stuff does that work.

Sk8r · 08/05/2013, 07:19 PM

Bristleworms can't bite. They can't chew. They only eat slime from dead things. They're very valuable for your tank. A big one, btw, is about a foot long.

brwneyedangel82 · 08/05/2013, 07:25 PM

oh ok didn't know. When its out again I'll try to take a pic of it but it seems pretty big to me. Is it possible then that the brittle star was dying that's why I guess it was coming at it or pulled off a leg. Cause one of its legs is missing and the bristle worm had it with him in a hole.

ca1ore · 08/05/2013, 08:09 PM

Bristle worms are awesome - the more the better. My guess is the worm and the star were wrestling over a morsel of food. Sk8r is right, no teeth - they 'lick' their food. I have only ever seen bristles go after something if it was dying/dead. Same for snails and crabs.

brwneyedangel82 · 08/05/2013, 09:15 PM

Thanks for the info everyone. I'm going to have to watch for that one bristle worm. It hasn't come out lately. But I'm gonna want to try and catch it cause it seems pretty big. Hopefully it comes out again so I can take a picture

Anemone · 08/05/2013, 09:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brwneyedangel82

Tank still cycling.

This is your problem with your brittle star. A tank that is still cycling will kill a brittle star. They also tend to die in when improperly acclimated. When they are dying, they begin to fall apart - legs drop off, they can get a big hole in their body that looks like they exploded, jagged white edges on their wounds.

They can still be saved when they get to this state, but they need excellent water conditions and gentle care.

Kevin

brwneyedangel82 · 08/05/2013, 09:31 PM

actually he came in as a hitchhiker its like those mini star fish. Still that wouldn't matter because my tank isn't ready and still cycling? I was told it was fine to leave it in there. But yeah that's what he looks like all jagged and stuff. We asked the lfs if it was okay to leave him in there or would he die. Didn't know it was going to die would have taken it out already.

brwneyedangel82 · 08/05/2013, 09:35 PM

If this brittle stars are going to be dying like that is it going to mess up the water because I found another mini brittle star. They aren't even that big. They're real small.

Sn8kbyt · 08/05/2013, 10:07 PM

If you can a picture of this worm would be great for a positive ID.

Although uncommon there are types of worms that are bad news.

brwneyedangel82 · 08/05/2013, 11:23 PM

Also another question do these bristle worms if that what it is move from rock to rock, cause my husband was like why not just throw out that one rock that has that big bristle worm in it or is it possible that it already moved to another rock? Thanks.

Sn8kbyt · 08/05/2013, 11:32 PM

Certainly possible. Usually they stick to their one original home though.

Spyderturbo007 · 08/06/2013, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sk8r

Bristleworms can't bite. They can't chew. They only eat slime from dead things. They're very valuable for your tank. A big one, btw, is about a foot long.

Are you sure about that? I have one that grabbed a hold of still living hermit crab and pull it into the rock. I think it caught the hermit crab while it was swapping shells. Just let me say, that this thing pulled so hard that it smashed the hermit crab enough to get it through a hole in the rock that was smaller than the hermit crab. It had to be hanging on to the hermit crab with something.

I know that everyone keeps saying that bristle worms don't kill and only eat things that are dying, but I'm not sure I believe that 100%. I've watched the one in my tank, that I'm still trying to remove, kill.

08/05/2013, 04:18 PM	#1
brwneyedangel82 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Texas Posts: 48	Bristle worm ate my brittle star So I went to see how my tank was going and there was this brittle star that I had plan on keeping all out in the open and I had the light on. I'm like why is out like that I thought they hide until its night. Come to find out that he was out cause the bristle worm was eating him and he was trying to get away. The bristle worm even had a piece of its leg in its mouth and the brittle star kept trying to get away and it look like half its body was missing. This bristle worm seemed pretty huge. I just got this lr in my tank almost 2 weeks ago no fish yet. Tank still cycling. Are bristle worms known to do this eat brittle stars and if so I don't want these in my tank. I liked the brittle star. Pretty sad its gone and it sucked that it had to suffer like that. __________________ salinity 1.024 temp 80 Current Tank Info: 40 gal breeder

08/05/2013, 06:13 PM	#2
maddmaxx Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Jersey Shore Posts: 3,003	ive never heard of that honestly. first thing that came to mind is that the bristle star was dying originally and the bristle worm was doin what they do by eating dying or dead organisms. you said the worm was kinda big? if its abnormally big id remove it honestly. but if its a nice size bristle worm but still "small" per say, id leave him in the tank. they are good janitors and usually eat left over food, waste, dying or dead corals. again, never heard of them attacking a bristle star like that __________________ One Life One Shot Current Tank Info: 40B Mixed reef

08/05/2013, 06:47 PM	#3
brwneyedangel82 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Texas Posts: 48	Yea we are planning on removing it it does seem way bigger then the others. The brittle star reappeared, so I'm not sure it may have just bitten off a arm or something. How can I remove it I see traps and stuff does that work. __________________ salinity 1.024 temp 80 Current Tank Info: 40 gal breeder

08/05/2013, 07:19 PM	#4
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Bristleworms can't bite. They can't chew. They only eat slime from dead things. They're very valuable for your tank. A big one, btw, is about a foot long. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

08/05/2013, 07:25 PM	#5
brwneyedangel82 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Texas Posts: 48	oh ok didn't know. When its out again I'll try to take a pic of it but it seems pretty big to me. Is it possible then that the brittle star was dying that's why I guess it was coming at it or pulled off a leg. Cause one of its legs is missing and the bristle worm had it with him in a hole. __________________ salinity 1.024 temp 80 Current Tank Info: 40 gal breeder

08/05/2013, 08:09 PM	#6
ca1ore Grizzled & Cynical Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Stamford, CT Posts: 17,319	Bristle worms are awesome - the more the better. My guess is the worm and the star were wrestling over a morsel of food. Sk8r is right, no teeth - they 'lick' their food. I have only ever seen bristles go after something if it was dying/dead. Same for snails and crabs.

08/05/2013, 09:15 PM	#7
brwneyedangel82 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Texas Posts: 48	Thanks for the info everyone. I'm going to have to watch for that one bristle worm. It hasn't come out lately. But I'm gonna want to try and catch it cause it seems pretty big. Hopefully it comes out again so I can take a picture __________________ salinity 1.024 temp 80 Current Tank Info: 40 gal breeder

08/05/2013, 09:31 PM	#9
brwneyedangel82 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Texas Posts: 48	actually he came in as a hitchhiker its like those mini star fish. Still that wouldn't matter because my tank isn't ready and still cycling? I was told it was fine to leave it in there. But yeah that's what he looks like all jagged and stuff. We asked the lfs if it was okay to leave him in there or would he die. Didn't know it was going to die would have taken it out already. __________________ salinity 1.024 temp 80 Current Tank Info: 40 gal breeder

08/05/2013, 09:35 PM	#10
brwneyedangel82 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Texas Posts: 48	If this brittle stars are going to be dying like that is it going to mess up the water because I found another mini brittle star. They aren't even that big. They're real small. __________________ salinity 1.024 temp 80 Current Tank Info: 40 gal breeder

08/05/2013, 10:07 PM	#11
Sn8kbyt Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Manitowoc, WI Posts: 607	If you can a picture of this worm would be great for a positive ID. Although uncommon there are types of worms that are bad news. __________________ 220 gallon DT and 90 gallon sump, all DC powered, APEX gold with DOS, feeder, and a few extra modules, Avast Marine swabbie on Skimz Monster 258, 6 Rapid LED Onyx fixtures, BRS dosers, 4 Jaebo RW-15. Current Tank Info: 220 Gallon, 29 Gallon, 2-20L QT, and a 20 gallon tall octogon tank waiting to be setup for a seahorse tank.

08/05/2013, 11:23 PM	#12
brwneyedangel82 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Texas Posts: 48	Also another question do these bristle worms if that what it is move from rock to rock, cause my husband was like why not just throw out that one rock that has that big bristle worm in it or is it possible that it already moved to another rock? Thanks. __________________ salinity 1.024 temp 80 Current Tank Info: 40 gal breeder

08/05/2013, 11:32 PM	#13
Sn8kbyt Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Manitowoc, WI Posts: 607	Certainly possible. Usually they stick to their one original home though. __________________ 220 gallon DT and 90 gallon sump, all DC powered, APEX gold with DOS, feeder, and a few extra modules, Avast Marine swabbie on Skimz Monster 258, 6 Rapid LED Onyx fixtures, BRS dosers, 4 Jaebo RW-15. Current Tank Info: 220 Gallon, 29 Gallon, 2-20L QT, and a 20 gallon tall octogon tank waiting to be setup for a seahorse tank.