I have an eerie feeling on these...

[liquidreamer]

This is my first time posting in this area... I have been seeing these little semi translucent spongy/hairy looking grass-green colored things multipliying and moving overnight. They also have white tips and seem to all form a circle. I just started to notice a couple a week or so ago and now there are dozens. I know they move very very slowly or only at night because they change positions when I wake. I fear that these things are tearing up lr and stuff - I just don't see it. Anyway - here are a few pics...

 

[mle421]

wow! i've never seen anything like that! but i've only been in the hobby for 5 months though 8O

 

[Fluff]

I've never seen anything like them either. Hopefully you can get a possitive ID and they turn out to be helpful. I think they are neat looking.

 

[BDAWG]

Wow, Fluff doesn't know what they are??

That is really strange though, I've never seen anything like that either. I will be very intrigued to find out what that is. Isn't the ocean great!? There's always something new to see.

 

[liquidreamer]

Well, it's neat and it sucks at the same time. I hope these things are moving more into view and not multiplying! There was a small tubeworm that I noticed that one is ramped up on and it looks like it may be eating it. Let's hope that they don't eat anything important or anything expensive.

 

[steve-s]

Can you get a closer pic? Could actually be a species of mushroom but there's not enough details to be sure.

Cheers
Steve

 

[Phyl]

Yikes! I can't believe Fluff can't ID them! I have some of those also. There is one of my rocks that has a bunch of them on them (look like paisley to me, lol). They don't appear to be multiplying or growing at all. I definitely keep watch over them though. I have some pictures of mine at home. I'll see if I can dig them up later.

 

[Fluff]

Paisley is the first thing I thought too.

 

[liquidreamer]

Yep, paisely... very good description! Some are also even tear-drop shaped - not just circle. I notice the one that was ramped up on the feather duster tube is now all the way on it... duster is no where to be found 8O It was very small though so.... I will try to get a better cam from someone asap. The little cybershot I used is more of a point and shoot cam with no zoom. Thanks for the info guys....

 

[Fluff]

Well, I'm gonna say (and since you say they move) it may be some type of turbellaria/flatworm. But, what species I have no idea. There are so many and some are quite attractive. Some flatworms are bad, some aren't so, you'd have to be really watch them to see.

 

[senorcat]

I'd wonder how someone would catch them all? the task would be excrutiating, and could they multiply in counteraction? If they kill too much to the point of losing the signifigance of your tank, try finding a known predator to them, and let them have it. If I lose my tank to a pest, I usually go all out war and salt the tank with iodized salt. Then, I rebuild after dechlorinating. I made the mistake of feeding the wrong food to my wife and I's fish, and it had too little protien. The presence of a pest made me remove the survivor, a mollie fry of 2 months old, and I let er rip with Morton's iodized salt. The pest actually survived a while, and appears to be a bristleworm and poss. mantis shrimp, so I now find to be poss. harmless, and the guilty party was my ignorance. they must have come with live rock. I fried them though, eventually salting them to a level of lethal dose. My hydrometer couldnt give an accurate reading. I had fun, but it was a waste of aggression since they prob. didnt harm my fish :x

 

[RocketSeason]

I gotta say that its probibly a flatworm as well. Lets hope the population doesn't explode.

 

[liquidreamer]

Update - I had a temp problem and my tank dropped to 76.1f and they seemed to have been greatly effected by this. They seemed all deflated and bleached. They also only seem to be on 1 or 2 rocks... mostly concentrated on 1. A few seem to have made it throught it and I am keeping an eye on them. Another thing that's wierd is it's like they leave/left a black charcoal trail on my rock.. .like a total destruction path or something. I can't tell if it's from them dying or where they were sitting before death as a result of their feeding.

 

[phishead]

bump, cause i'm so curious!