Bristle Worms

[Stowers02]

I recently noticed that my reef tank has bristle worms. At first I didn't know what these creatures were so I researched them on the web and found a plethora of mixed opinions on them. Some say they are good for the bio-system of the tank, others say they cause damage to corals and are a pest. Some sites also provide several ways to remove them. So should I try to remove them and if so what is the best method? Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[xxmoorishmanxx]

some kinds live in the sand and very rarely go into the rocks and bother corals, but some fire worms such as hermodice sp. will be more of a threat.

HTH
P.S Sand dweller is Eurythoe sp.

Josh

 

[phases99]

Innocent until proven guilty is the best approach.

 

[klam]

If the bristle worms you have look like this than they are beneficial, just your average bristle worm.

http://www.reefs.org/hhfaq/pages/picture_pages/faq_bristle.html

 

[quarryshark]

Yup, I have a bunch in my tanks, they don't bother anything to this point.

 

[Brad]

I agree with the photo. That's one of the type that seem quite harmless. The one's that attack corals tend to be more attractive (bushier spines, a bit more colorful, and thicker bodied) They also tend to be bolder...crawling wherever they please. Fortunately, that also makes them easy to catch.

The harmless ones seem to be much more timid, rarely extending themselves fully out any particular hole.

Now..if you aren't trying to keep corals, you're probably ok to keep them all.