Bristle worms from Hell.

[Dan]

My tanks have at least two species of bristle worms. A small reddish type that I got from IPSF. And the pinkish ones which get fairly large (5-6 inches). I truly believe that those pink ones were sent to my tank by Lucifer himself. I have taken to wearing Playtex gloves because I am tired of that burning sensation I get whenever I re-arrange a rock. Whether I touch one of not, their bristles always end up in my fingers. The irritation starts out slowly, but within a day I have swelling at the site of contact. I once got nailed on my forearm after brushing the gloves against it, thereby transfering bristles from the latex to my skin. It is real annoying. I want them gone. I tried to teach the clownfish to herd the bas***ds into the anemones, but the fish refused to act like Border Collies, saying something about being too degrading. So now I am making some PVC traps to scatter around the tanks. In the mean time, any suggestions on natural predators? Thanks.

Dan

[Edited by Dan on 01-19-2001 at 06:12 PM]

[rshimek]

Dan,

Well, you now have discovered why they are called fire worms... :D Banded coral shrimp may eat them. Virtually nothing else that we have in tanks will.

On the negative side, they give you a buzz when you impact the (poisonous) spines.

On the plus side they are some of the best scavengers for your tank, and the eggs, sperm, and larvae they produce feed your corals and soft corals.

My suggestion would be to cultivate an appreciation for such a well-protected beneficial animal. They are effectively impossible to eradicate and they are found in almost all reef tanks.

The bristles are made of calcium carbonate. If you get some into you, you can facilitate their dissolution by rubbing them with a vinegar drenched sponge.