Christmas tree rock worms

[Auto-pilot]

Hey I got this coral full of worms about 3 months ago and I wanted to show it to you guys and document it's health and how it's growing and what I'm doing to keep the inhabitants of this Little Rock alive! These worms are super cool and ever since I got into saltwater aquariums I've wanted to get one and see if I could get it to thrive! I got one off of aquarium creations online a year or two ago and it arrived dead with 5 small worms in it. After that I couldn't find anyone that was selling a "Christmas tree rock worm" Untill I ran across one on EBAY and decided to take the risk.

They require food flouting in the water column and I had a plan before I bought it and so far so good. I grow phytoplankton and dose it every night before I go to bed because that is when they are all out. During the day they are always getting scared by the fish and any bump in the houseso they are constantly popping in and out. As a result it is nearly impossible to get a good picture of all the worms.

Not only are there worms in this rock but little shrimp (don't know their name) that catch particles and the water to eat, I have 5 of them. Also one clam that is randomly jammed right in the middle.

If anyone has any advice let me know, its one of my favorite peaces so I'm highly committed to keeping them alive
I run my water at
1.026 salinity
7.0-7.5 dkh alkalinity
450ppm calcium
1350 magnesium
5ppm NO3
.01-.1 phosphate (allways a battle for me)
8.3 Ph
I have a sump, witch cheato and a skimmer in it. I also have a high bio load so the water has a ton of particles floating around in it, especially if I blow in the rocks.
Let me know what's you think!

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Nice score! Love the clam.

Honestly mine were easy. Don’t feed much special to it. I don’t skim hard.
Do Focus on the coral health though. I see lots of rocks with worms but no coral anymore.
I do belive the piorites is a higher light coral.

 

[tenten900]

Love these! I have two of these rocks and those are Paguritta hermit crabs! Theyre so cool and I wish I got those crabs with my rocks.

 

[Auto-pilot]

Yeah I have it under more intense lighting and it seems to be doing good! Ive been watching the coral like a hawk! it seems to be doing good, at night it extends and I can see all of the polyps. It hasn't grown but it seems to be doing good right now. I've more recently been doing a lot better with Sps corals and I'm super exited to see it grow. How long have you guys had your corals and worms? Ive been told that sometimes worms will live for a long time and then eventually starve and die

 

[tenten900]

Yeah I have it under more intense lighting and it seems to be doing good! Ive been watching the coral like a hawk! it seems to be doing good, at night it extends and I can see all of the polyps. It hasn't grown but it seems to be doing good right now. I've more recently been doing a lot better with Sps corals and I'm super exited to see it grow. How long have you guys had your corals and worms? Ive been told that sometimes worms will live for a long time and then eventually starve and die

I had both of mine for around 3-4 months now. Thats what I heard too I just been feeding them phyto-feast, reef roids, and some brightwell bottles for filterfeeders. They seem to be healthy always out and open. They only close when a fish swims too close or I walk up and cast a shadow over them.

 

[Auto-pilot]

Hey just an update on my Christmas trees! So far I haven't lost any worms ,BUT they haven't grow. And some didn't look great about a month ago so I decided I needed to add more food to the tank. It's been a battle to add more food as it's hard to keep the nutrient levels in the tank down, but I've been doing good so far. Nitrates rose to 25pp. And phosphates went to .2 but with a little bit of no pox we I'm getting on track again. I'm supplementing Reef blizzard O and my worms have been doing better. I really want to see them start growing! Here's a picture of them tonight.

Also my sea apple loves the reef blizzard I add to the tank

When I add a little to my tank he just starts going going to town and munching on all the particles
Also the coral had grown alot and is doing better than when. I got it

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Love the Xmas rock. In the 80s they were everywhere. Not as common now.

Not a nem guy, they creep me out. Your sea apple nice though

 

[Auto-pilot]

Thanks, one other thing I'd like to mention is that they need a good amount of flow. Not too much but moderate flow that's consistent to bring them food. I can tell when they aren't happy because they start loosening feathers and if I correct the problem the fethers grow back.

 

[Auto-pilot]

Hey question for all of you guys! There are hermit crabs that live in the rock and they capture food. I had a worm die and fall out, a day after that I saw a crab living in its hole. Did the crab kill the worm to take its hole in the rock?? I noticed all the crabs are now on top, they cool but i was wondering if they are all going to move to the top and start taking all the holes in the rock

 

[Auto-pilot]

 

[Jon Fishman]

Crab is probably just being opportunistic

 

[Auto-pilot]

Maybe I just don't know anything about these crabs

 

[Zero1091]

Pagurrita hermits, they are dope filter feeders. Opportunistic to pellets and other foods aswell

 

[TexasReefer82]

Hey just an update on my Christmas trees! So far I haven't lost any worms ,BUT they haven't grow. And some didn't look great about a month ago so I decided I needed to add more food to the tank. It's been a battle to add more food as it's hard to keep the nutrient levels in the tank down, but I've been doing good so far. Nitrates rose to 25pp. And phosphates went to .2 but with a little bit of no pox we I'm getting on track again. I'm supplementing Reef blizzard O and my worms have been doing better. I really want to see them start growing! Here's a picture of them tonight.

Also my sea apple loves the reef blizzard I add to the tank

When I add a little to my tank he just starts going going to town and munching on all the particles
Also the coral had grown alot and is doing better than when. I got it

Can you give an update on how are the Christmas Tree Worms doing with withe Reef Blizzard-O? I'm wanting to keep a rock of these worms myself as a centerpiece in my tank but need to know how to properly feed them first. The reef builders studio apparently has success with the Reef Blizzard product.