Feather Duster

[ekean45]

I have a feather duster that looked like he was doing great. I understand if they get stressed, they may lose their crown and they grow back over several months.

When I put him in the tank, I put him in a crevice in some live rock. The other day, I saw the what I think is crown floating around the tank as a single unit. I could not tell if it was the crown or part of the actual worm. I think the reason why this may have happened is that one of the larger snails in my tank was on top of the casing. But since the majority of the casing is in the crevice, I could not feel down to see if it was the entire animal or not. I'm apprehensive about removing the casing because it seems to have attached to rock and I don't want to risk harming it if it is still alive.

My question is, when they lose the crown, is it usually in pieces (as if each feather separated), or is it normal for the entire thing to come off in one piece?

 

[EriksFish315]

My snails and crabs crawl all over my feather duster he doesn't seem to mind.

 

[ekean45]

Just noticed that the crown on the feather duster just started to grow back!

 

[AquaRick]

Glad he's pulling through.

 

[Starchar]

They can pop off their crowns if they get stressed out. If it is growing back it is likely recovering nicely.

 

[MacDracor]

Most likely the move freaked him out. But Starchar is right. If it's growing back, he should be fine. I do have to comment on one thing, though...
That was fast! I had a little pink duster that I was sure was dead for months until I noticed a new crown poking out of the sand. You must have gotten a very healthy, robust worm to being recovering so fast!