bristle worm
 

i just took a quick peek tonight at my tank with a flash light when the lights were off and i saw a big bristle worm that was about 4-5 inches long entwined in the rock :eek2:

are these harmful to other animals in the tank and if so how do i get them out with out with out bieng stung

IMO, get them out if they are big. Small ones are good.

Once they get large enough, yes they will inflict damage to coral like they would stinging you. I do not think that they are predatory, it is just that it got a couple of pieces too many of mysid. For the most part, bristleworms of certain species, are great for your tank, as long as they stay about 2 inches and thin, not fat. You can set up a bristleworm trap which basically is like any insect container trap.
[url]http://www.garf.org/news25p1.html[/url]
or you can buy one and this is the one I caught four with tonight
[url]http://www.aquacave.com/detail.aspx?ID=932[/url]

I have not seen any research that says they are dangerous if they get too large, not ordinary bristle worms at least.
If they are getting that big, perhaps there is too much food available? As far as i know, they only consume dead tissue.
I would leave them alone, and monitor the amount of detritus that is available for them to grow on.

Get rid of it! I haven't had them in my tank (except for small ones which are OK) but I have read that they are dangerous to corals.

i did the red ballon over a flashlight trick and plucked it out with a tweezers

I have quite a few bristle worms myself, some over 3 inches. I haven't read anything about common bristleworms eating coral. I consider mine welcome vaccuum cleaners. I couldn't imagine not having them in my little nano to keep the gunk level down in the dead spots. Then again, I'm still new to this hobby.

[QUOTE][i]<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11569598#post11569598 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Tennyson [/i]
[B]Get rid of it! I haven't had them in my tank (except for small ones which are OK) but I have read that they are dangerous to corals. [/B][/QUOTE]
Would you mind posting a link or a reference to where you have read these facts?

I would really like to read the truth about these creatures.

thanks.

[QUOTE][i]<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11555094#post11555094 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SSalty [/i]
[B]IMO, get them out if they are big. Small ones are good. [/B][/QUOTE]


same here i remove the larger ones. i some times get new rocks or what ever and i find myself moving rocks and if i was to get bit i would want to get bitten by a smaller one