Live Rock Hitchhikers

[Nick711]

Have a few hitchhikers that I am trying to ID from my TBS live rock. I’ve been dealing w. plenty of good and bad hitchikers (30+ cirolanids on 8lb of LR thus far), but here are a few more I’ve yet to confirm ID.

1) Think it could be a dorvilleidae worm but seems rather long Has been quite active during the day picking stuff of sand/rock. Have not seen it completely out of the rock and it’s very quick at the first sign of movement. Thought it was a cool video to share!

TBS Live Rock hitchhiker worm

youtube.com

2) These white/translucent tubes are growing quite rapidly. Assuming they’re a form of tube sponge. Have them all over several rocks. The red sponge on this rock is starting to “transform” into a tube as well.

3) misc coral. Tiny and not in a great spot, so hard to get good pictures. Added a few pictures under white & blue light.

4) Yellow worm I saw last night. Believe it may have been an oenone worm, unfortunately. I actually had it in my turkey baster and it escaped before I removed it from tank. No where to be found now.

5) Same rock as above, but pointing out this weird mucus / film that seems to only appear at night around the holes of this rock. That’s what made me believe it was an oenone worm as I know they can produce such a thing to capture prey, however, I’m not sure if it appears like this. Any ideas?

ALSO, the black and white speckled creature in the top hole… maybe a leopard polyclad flatworm? Seems rather small. Have at least one other in a hole on a different rock. Never seen them leave the hole.

6) Not going to try sharing the one horrible picture I have as you cannot make it out, but there was also a nudibranch I saw last night… looked rather similar to a berghia (maybe it’s wishful thinking, to help w the apaista hitchhiker), but instead of straight “spines” they were rather curly. It was completely whitish color and maybe 1/2”- 3/4”. Anyone aware of a nudibranch that looks similar to a berghia? Will see if I can locate it for a better picture tonight, but the first time I saw it was last night.

Thanks!

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

1) Think it could be a dorvilleidae worm

Dorvilleid worm is a good guess; if it has four tentacles on the face, then I'd go with that.

2) These white/translucent tubes are growing quite rapidly. Assuming they’re a form of tube sponge.

That's my guess as well - bunch of nice sponges on that piece.

3) misc coral.

I'm not good with corals yet, so no guesses there from me.

4) Yellow worm

Oenone fulgida is one possibility, a Phyllodoce sp. may be another, and Eulalia viridis (which sometimes comes in a yellow "morph") is another. If you can get a close enough look at the head and sides/bristles, then you should be able to ID it - assuming that it's one of those three possibilities (see my quote below).

The only other worm I know outside of the Phyllodoce genus is Eulalia viridis (typically green, but it is apparently seen in yellow sometimes too). Based on the tail this guy shows, however, I'm inclined to agree that it is likely a Phyllodoce sp. and not E. Viridis. Some Phyllodoce spp. are harmless detritivores (CUC), but others are thought to be carnivorous - typically preying on other worms or snails from what I've seen. I am fairly confident it's not Oenone fulgida - the head on that worm lacks the prominent tentacles displayed by this specimen.

Pages 228-232 of the link below discusses the known feeding habits of various Phyllodocidae species, including a few Phyllodoce spp. - generally, it seems these guys would probably be safe for fish and inverts except for snails and other worms (tube building worms specifically). For the sake of not needing to replace CUC, I'd probably say to pull it as a precaution, especially since you've already seen one interacting with a snail.

Diet of Worms Emended: An Update of Polychaete Feeding Guilds

Diet of Worms Emended: An Update of Polychaete Feeding Guilds

www.academia.edu

5) Same rock as above, but pointing out this weird mucus / film

I'm struggling to see this one, so no guesses here from me.

ALSO, the black and white speckled creature in the top hole… maybe a leopard polyclad flatworm?

Can't say for sure without a better pic of it - sorry.

Anyone aware of a nudibranch that looks similar to a berghia?

There are a large number of nudibranchs that look superficially similar to berghias (I personally struggle to differentiate them, so I probably wouldn't be much help with this ID).

Also, just to mention, it looks like you've got a number of colonial tunicates on some of those rocks (they're harmless and should be easy to remove if needed, but they can sometimes be invasive).

Overall, nice rocks there!

 

[Nick711]

Oenone fulgida is one possibility, a Phyllodoce sp. may be another, and Eulalia viridis (which sometimes comes in a yellow "morph") is another. If you can get a close enough look at the head and sides/bristles, then you should be able to ID it - assuming that it's one of those three possibilities (see my quote below).

Also, just to mention, it looks like you've got a number of colonial tunicates on some of those rocks (they're harmless and should be easy to remove if needed, but they can sometimes be invasive)

Appreciate the reply! Yea I hope to relocate the yellow worm and see if I can take a closer look at the head before coming back to your resources. Thanks for sharing. The interesting part is that worm is on a rock that is filled w. Tube worms, all of which seem to be doing ok from what I can tell. Nonetheless, if it’s a potential bad guy I’d rather be safe than sorry and just remove it next time I see it. (It was also relatively slow & easy to catch)

I have noticed the colonial tunicates on that rock and a couple other spots as well. They’re pretty cool. Thanks for the heads-up tho - something I will monitor

 

[Kmst80]

Watch that Caulerpa, that'll take over your tank if you haven't got fish that is eating it.

 

[Nick711]

Watch that Caulerpa, that'll take over your tank if you haven't got fish that is eating it.

thanks - I did notice it’s growing quite rapidly. Luckily I have it isolated to a few rocks (the one pictured is the most prominent growth).
I do enjoy it but will need to keep it in balance as I do not currently have anything that eats it

 

[wtdenk]

I won't be very helpful here, but I got some TBS rock about a year ago now. I have some pictures of both of the worms you reference. I tried for a few months to catch them and have given up. Literally only saw the yellow worm once. The good news is none of the worms have gotten out of line and harmed anything yet. I tear down their lairs when they try building out from the rocks. You'll most likely have to make a decision soon when you find your first lightbulb anemone whether to keep it. Mine has become the size of a baseball and hasnt spread yet, but ive been told it will and ill regret it. Still new stuff showing up. I have a new cup coral! Best rock ever honestly. Completely avoided all uglies.

Edit: My rock had tons of those white tubes (sponges?) in the beginning as well, but they all went away after a few months.

 

[Nick711]

I won't be very helpful here, but I got some TBS rock about a year ago now. I have some pictures of both of the worms you reference. I tried for a few months to catch them and have given up. Literally only saw the yellow worm once. The good news is none of the worms have gotten out of line and harmed anything yet. I tear down their lairs when they try building out from the rocks. You'll most likely have to make a decision soon when you find your first lightbulb anemone whether to keep it. Mine has become the size of a baseball and hasnt spread yet, but ive been told it will and ill regret it. Still new stuff showing up. I have a new cup coral! Best rock ever honestly. Completely avoided all uglies.

Edit: My rock had tons of those white tubes (sponges?) in the beginning as well, but they all went away after a few months.

Wow - thanks for sharing! Very similar situations but glad to hear you noticed no negative results.

Regarding the anemones - funny enough I had a white one for the first several days that has since disappeared (?) and just last night, found another larger / tan one on the bottom side of the other rock. I haven’t made up my mind what to do with them. I’m afraid of them spreading as well, but at this point might wait and see as I’ve read so many similar experiences with TBS rock where they do not spread like other species. I’ll monitor closely and if I see any more pop up, decide my next step.

I do agree the rock is amazing. I feel like I’ve come across most of the “bad” you hear about, but it’s outnumbered by the “good” in my opinion. Hoping I do not go through a bad ugly stage either - only a light amount of diatoms thus far.

 

[blecki]

Is that a giant glass anemone or a tiny snail? At that size I'm not sure you could kill it.

 

[Lavey29]

I might be in the minority but I pretty much want anything living on or in live rock in my tank with only an obvious few exceptions like aptasia. I think all those creatures you are seeing are what will help nurture your tank environment. Biodiversity and microfauna to build your biome.

 

[Kmst80]

I might be in the minority but I pretty much want anything living on or in live rock in my tank with only an obvious few exceptions like aptasia. I think all those creatures you are seeing are what will help nurture your tank environment. Biodiversity and microfauna to build your biome.

This needs to be made a sticky on top of each page where people have problems with sick fish coz they started with sterile rock and where ppl have huge issues with algae coz they started with sterile rock.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

This needs to be made a sticky on top of each page where people have problems with sick fish coz they started with sterile rock and where ppl have huge issues with algae coz they started with sterile rock.

Most "huge issues with algae" can be overcome with patience... It's wanting a quick fix for the uglies that gets people in trouble.

 

[wtdenk]

Is that a giant glass anemone or a tiny snail? At that size I'm not sure you could kill it.

That's a giant lightbulb anemone from what i believe. About the size of a baseball. Started tiny and grew well. Hasn't spread or reproduced yet. Stopped getting any larger a few months ago. I feed it LPS pellets.

 

[blecki]

That's a giant lightbulb anemone from what i believe. About the size of a baseball. Started tiny and grew well. Hasn't spread or reproduced yet. Stopped getting any larger a few months ago. I feed it LPS pellets.

Never heard of it. Quick bit of googling and I guess they look like a BTA but very transparent?

 

[Nick711]

I was able to get a nice video of the Nudibranch plus a couple still shots while on the glass… I placed it on what I believed to be either 1) a baby anemone or 2) filter feeder and it devoured it relatively quick. Seems to at least be part of the berghia family? Not sure how many other nudis would consume filter feeders and/or potential aipaista / anemones.

I also noticed two baby nudis on the glass this morning (same species)

Nudibranch

youtube.com

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Seems to at least be part of the berghia family?

It’s at least from the same super family, Aeolidioidea, so at least moderately closely related to Berghias for certain.

Not sure how many other nudis would consume filter feeders and/or potential aipaista / anemones.

A ton of nudibranch species are either thought to or known to eat various filter feeders (such as sponges or bryozoans), but few that I’m aware of eat anemones.