Bristle worm without bristles?

PotatoPig

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Vacuumed this critter off the rocks today, about an inch long, looks kinda like a Bristleworm, but skinnier than most I seem to have and just looks like it has a ton of legs rather than the bristles. Is this just an odd looking bristleworm?

 

TehBrainz

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Hard to see its head in the video. Could be a dorvilleidae worm. Hopefully not a eunice.

Euthanize it and take a closer picture. If it's a dorcilleidae, they are beneficial and you'll most likely have more. If it's a eunice, then you did a huge favor for the tank. Either way, you should be able to get an ID and sleep better!
 

ISpeakForTheSeas

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looks like it has a ton of legs rather than the bristles. Is this just an odd looking bristleworm?
Yeah, that's a bristleworm - the "legs" are the parapodia; the places where the bristles leave the worm's body.

Yours is probably a Dorvilleid worm, which is harmless/beneficial.
I think I have one of these in my tank. Are eunice worms the ones that appear to have 2 fish hooks as teeth?
They can be; as a general rule for the Eunicids we get in the hobby, if it has five tentacles on its head, then it's probably a Eunicid. Some Eunicids (like the infamous bobbit) are problematic, but others are harmless/beneficial like most bristleworms.
 

EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal

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Yeah, that's a bristleworm - the "legs" are the parapodia; the places where the bristles leave the worm's body.

Yours is probably a Dorvilleid worm, which is harmless/beneficial.

They can be; as a general rule for the Eunicids we get in the hobby, if it has five tentacles on its head, then it's probably a Eunicid. Some Eunicids (like the infamous bobbit) are problematic, but others are harmless/beneficial like most bristleworms.
Thank you! I hate when people lump all eunicid worms together...
 

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