Is This A Worm?

[Iron E]

After putting a layer of live sand covered by a couple of layers of Aragonite, I see these red lines progressively rising toward the surface. Any word on what they might be will be appreciated.

Thanks, Tom

[CarmieJo]

I think it is a spaghetti worm. They are beneficial!

[Iron E]

I think it is a spaghetti worm. They are beneficial!

Cool!

I got this sand from the same source i got the Live Rock with all the good hitchikers.

Thanks, Tom

[Skurvey Dog]

It sort of looks like a medusa worm. They live in substrate and under LR and are good as they keep the sand bed from getting too compacted. I'm just not sure on the ID.

[Skurvey Dog]

Lol, so..... I'm a slow poster!

[Iron E]

Lol, so..... I'm a slow poster!

I know ! It happens to me all the time!!
Tom

[Skurvey Dog]

Thanks for making me feel better Iron!

[CarmieJo]

Ha ha, it happens to me too.
(BTW, medusa and spaghetti are synonyms in this case.)

[Iron E]

medusa and spaghetti are synonyms in this case.

Great minds...

[CarmieJo]

Lori and I are actually twins who were separated at birth. OK, not really but we could be.

[CarmieJo]

By the way, that is an outstanding photograph!

[Skurvey Dog]

Lol Yes CJo and I are twins. She got all the brains and good looks and I got..... "What did I get CJo?" Lol!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh, yeah, an overly keen witt and sense of humor!

[CarmieJo]

Lol Yes CJo and I are twins. She got all the brains and good looks and I got..... "What did I get CJo?" Lol!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh, yeah, an overly keen witt and sense of humor!

LOL, since we are twins we are both smart, beautiful, witty and funny! But somehow you managed to get artistic too!

[rayme07]

LOL you guys are great that's what makes me love you girls.

But I am going to have to agree with Carmie it looks like a spaghetti worm.

[Iron E]

LOL you guys are great that's what makes me love you girls.

Bestill, my beating heart!

Tom

[rayme07]

Bestill, my beating heart!

Tom

[CarmieJo]

You guys crack me up!

[lance]

look's like a juvenile bristle-worm I have them all in the tank I breed them in they seem to do this all day until I feed then after feed they go back into substrate I guess eating some kind of micro-fauna or some way to have shelter from predator's. if it was a peanut worm or spaghetti worm the base would be green and have long tentacle's petruding from the surface of the substrate.

lance

[rayme07]

I think it is a spaghetti worm here is a picture I found online that looks pretty close to yours.

Piotr Rotkiewicz's Photo Gallery :: Worms (Robaki) :: sworm01

Here is also a small list of names of other worms just in case you find more worms.

http://www.pirx.com/gallery/worms

Hope this helps.

[Seahorsedreams]

It's a Cirratulid - aka Hair Worm

[CarmieJo]

I'd take Renee's (Seahorsedreams) ID any day!

[lance]

I'm telling you its a bristle worm if that is a spaghetti worm I'm a hippopotamus. It is a juvenile bristle-worm look at the color's in the body red light black strip forming what peanut worm is red with an elongated body and there are no tentacle's petruding on the surface it is too long for a peanut worm plus it doesn't have the protective pouch. Bristle-worm

lance

[Seahorsedreams]

I'm telling you its a bristle worm if that is a spaghetti worm I'm a hippopotamus. It is a juvenile bristle-worm look at the color's in the body red light black strip forming what peanut worm is red with an elongated body and there are no tentacle's petruding on the surface it is too long for a peanut worm plus it doesn't have the protective pouch. Bristle-worm

lance

Helloooo Hippo!

You need to look at the photo again... let's rotate it and make it bigger.

It's not a bristle, spaghetti or a peanut worm... it's a It's a Cirratulid - aka Hair Worm

There are no bristles. A bristleworm needs bristles.

Bristle worms are not the only red worm. Hair worms are red as well.

There are many many gills coming out of that worm as indicated by the blue arrows. The red arrows indicated the feeding tentacles.



FWIW, there are a few easily identifiable difference in the spaghetti worm verses the hair worm, albeit it doesn't really make a difference because they are so similiar.

The spaghetti worm has a pile of white tentacles originating out of the top. These are all feeding tentacles and do not originate out of any other place on the body. There is a little red bundle that also originates out of the top which is the gills. The worm itself is generally tube bound but of course can move and rebuild.

A hair worm (Cirratulid) does not live in permant tubes. They have only 2 feeding tentables originating from the top while the red gills run along the entire side of the worm. If you see a tentacled worm on the glass, it's a hair worm as they are more apt to roam not having a permanent home.

[CarmieJo]

Thanks Renee. I didn't know the difference between the two.

[Seahorsedreams]

I just changed out the picture. I didn't have the red arrows in there indicating the 2 feeding tentacles. Interesting little things, aren't they.