So what is this???

I have noticed it's arms. At first I just thought it was hair algae. The "hair" is very thin, grayish, and is segmented with some color bands. Not many, seemed to be more though.

This morning looking around before the light came on and "it" is out. "hair" all over. Some as long as 4"-5". The body is more out of some hole. Still gray. As usual, need to know if I should kill it before it multiplies.

The main body with the big arrow. The samll arrows are the hair.



A close up.

 

Spaghetti worm. That would be my guess. The pokadots are throwing me a bit though.

 

Spaghetti and Hair Worms… What’s in a Name? by Ronald L. Shimek, Ph.D. - Reefkeeping.com

 

Interesting. Thanks.

 

So are they harmful???

I did manage to see it reel in a lump of poop for breakfast.

I'm surprised one of my crabs has not ate it.

 

They aren't harmful at all. In fact, many people purposely buy these from Inland Aquatics or Indo Pacific Sea Farms.

 

I haven't added anything in a while. I don't know how long it's been there. I only noticed a few strand and figured it was a bit of hair algae. Only recently has it begun to grow and get more noticeable. It was only this morning I saw it "out" for the first time. In fact, it is in a high flow area and it's feeders get blown around. Maybe I'll find a better place for it.

Critters are cool. I won't get rid of it. I just needed to know if it gets invasive and out of control.

Thanks for your help guys.

 

If you overfeed, you'll have too much uneaten food and excessive poo. Their populations will explode and could get annoying in that situation. However, if you're not overfeeding, just watch and enjoy. They are saving you from having to clean it up.

 

That said, if you are overfeeding they will help you out a lot. So if you see their population increase - Stop Overfeeding.