To Bristle Or Not To Bristle

[Marie7]

I hate them and every time I found one I pull it out, my fingers count more than have them as part of the cleaning crew, they can grow big time, and if one brakes the other part became another bristle, I guess that I want to have a reef tank free of this guy's, I want to look at my corals and enjoy looking at them with out the worries of also putting my hands on my tank and get a painful sting of a bristle, I hear that some times they like to munch on some type of corals, not mine!
I have a 70 gallon reef tank and so far I haven't seen no more after I pull tree from a rock, yesterday I was working on my bio cube which I'm turning it into a reef too, I found a bristle under a coral I place few days ago, for some reason I keep finding bristles all the time on this one and ask myself where are they coming from, but I'm ready to take my live rock and deep it on fresh water and Alka zeltzer to kill what ever is on those 3 rocks. I believe that if bristle or not depends on what u like but as I read u have a very good cleaning crew with out the bristle already.

 

[BestMomEver]

Where the is one, there is more

I was gonna say.... I’m sure there are more. There’s always one more than you want!

 

[BestMomEver]

I think they are creepy looking. They look like centipedes or something. Ewwwwww!;Nailbiting

 

[Nelson Vargas]

I personally rather not have them in my tank, they can grow pretty rapidly and don’t see the extra need of having them in the tank with a good CUC in effect. But that’s just my opinion. Besides they sting pretty good if you manage to touch one...

 

[Wh00pS32]

I personally rather not have them in my tank, they can grow pretty rapidly and don’t see the extra need of having them in the tank with a good CUC in effect. But that’s just my opinion. Besides they sting pretty good if you manage to touch one...

Your average CUC can't get inside all the nooks and crannies of your rock work, this is where bristleworms excel.
Put it this way, i would be happy running a tank without snails and hermits, but i would never run a tank without bristleworms, they are the best CUC bar none.

 

[Cherub]

Don't have them and don't want them. Argue all you want, they are a pest. Plenty of other CUC out there to not have to deal with this red hot mess. Mini britles do just fine for nooks and crannies too. I hate bristles with a passion.

 

[zoso]

I truly appreciate the wealth of knowledge and personal experiences and opinions that everyone has shared with my asking of advice. I have not added the worm yet and I am still on the fence about it. I believe I do not have any other bristles , as the tank is very new . I have a hypothetical question about the bristle worm . If I am not over feeding and with the size of tank and the occupants within it. Would or could the bristle worm become more of a predator as it is now another mouth to feed ?

 

[Nelson Vargas]

Your average CUC can't get inside all the nooks and crannies of your rock work, this is where bristleworms excel.
Put it this way, i would be happy running a tank without snails and hermits, but i would never run a tank without bristleworms, they are the best CUC bar none.

Just watched this video, looking on the care level on scollys and to my surprise here are the notorious “Good CUC” bristle worms in full effect. Again we can argue all day long about these but regardless of anybody’s success with them they are an extreme pest and a keep away part of the eco system. They are very strong, grow quick and extend the size of any tank given the time and Food to grow. But don’t listen to me look at this video of the great bristle worm taking food out of this scollys mouth. Yes I know other CUC can do the same but this is just crazy.. I can spook a snail or crabs but these guys with probably look at you and say I wish you would.

 

[robert a millen]

With a long tweezers I remove several bristles every month or two. It's a good member of clean up crew but also easy to pluck and throw out as a means of nutrient export.

 

[Nelson Vargas]

I truly appreciate the wealth of knowledge and personal experiences and opinions that everyone has shared with my asking of advice. I have not added the worm yet and I am still on the fence about it. I believe I do not have any other bristles , as the tank is very new . I have a hypothetical question about the bristle worm . If I am not over feeding and with the size of tank and the occupants within it. Would or could the bristle worm become more of a predator as it is now another mouth to feed ?

Don’t take my advise I’m also new with 1 year under my belt. But to give you my advise you are better off with out it. You are going to end up with bristle worms inside your tank regardless some way or form. But keeping Te population down will help you. They are predators and will eat lights on Or off. But again the less you put it in the betters get rid of it or give it to someone that wants it. Some people actually buy them to put in there tanks.

 

[KenO]

that's handy info

If you get some bristles in your finger, soak it in vinegar. The vinegar will dissolve the bristles.

 

[Wh00pS32]

Just watched this video, looking on the care level on scollys and to my surprise here are the notorious “Good CUC” bristle worms in full effect. Again we can argue all day long about these but regardless of anybody’s success with them they are an extreme ptes and a keep away part of the eco system. They are very strong, grow quick and extend the size of any tank given the time and Food to grow. But don’t listen to me look at this video of the great bristle worm taking food out of this scollys mouth. Yes I know other CUC can do the same but this is just crazy.. I can spook a snail or crabs but these guys with probably look at you and say I wish you would.

Go on then explain to us how they are "extreme pests", they only take food that is dead or dying, they only grow to large numbers if you are massivly overfeeding and they are not "predators" as you claim in your next post.
You seem to be one of the snowflake generation that is scared of anything that does not look nice and fluffy.
Thanks for the video that shows how NOT to feed a scolly, feeding LPS foods that are too large for them causes it to just sit inside the coral and rot causing problems. That bristleworm did the scollys owner a huge favor and did you notice how the "predator" didn't harm the coral in any way?

 

[PhreeByrd]

Having a saltwater aquarium without bristleworms is exactly like having a garden without earthworms -- impossible. You either have them, whether you want them or not, or you need them. Common bristleworms are beneficial in every possible way, and in no way are they harmful to anything. They are not predatory and do not bother anything that's alive. They eat only dead tissue and detritus. Their 'sting' is simply a defense mechanism, and to humans it is just a mild, very temporary irritation. They are a natural part of the aquatic food chain, and there is no other organism that performs the function that they do as effectively as they do. They do not bother any healthy corals at all, and in fact if you see one on a coral it is likely to be your first alert of a problem with that coral. But the worm is not the cause -- it may actually be the remedy, if there is one. An overabundance of them, while not really a problem, indicates that there is too much waste in your system.

Sure, there are some undesirable species of bristleworms, but they are extremely rare in the hobby.

You cannot intentionally remove them from live rock without completely sterilizing the rock. There is no question about this. It is literally impossible.

 

[Marie7]

Don't have them and don't want them. Argue all you want, they are a pest. Plenty of other CUC out there to not have to deal with this red hot mess. Mini britles do just fine for nooks and crannies too. I hate bristles with a passion.

Agree with you, feel the same way, as you say for me also they are a Pest and I rather have a pest free reef as much as I can.

 

[Marie7]

Looks like I'm in the minority. Y'all can have all the bristle worms out there. haha.

I cannot stand them. One turns into hundreds.

I kid you not I had a 14g BioCube I kept a Green Clown-Goby in along with a couple of shrimp. When I took the tank down I found a bristle worm at least a foot long hidden behind the false wall.

I'll pluck them out of the tank any chance I get.

Who know if that's what I have too that they keep appearing all the time in such small tank, I rather disconnect and look behind that wall too

 

[Mindy Walker]

I don’t mind tbe bristle worms . But I have found two huge ones that look like a fire worm ? What does everyone think ? I posted before and got three people saying they think it’s a fire worm and to be careful and take them out ?

 

[Dancingmad]

I don’t mind tbe bristle worms . But I have found two huge ones that look like a fire worm ? What does everyone think ? I posted before and got three people saying they think it’s a fire worm and to be careful and take them out ?

Ooooh I like that worm. I don't appreciate the fake play button in the middle of the picture *click click click click click* I want to see it slither *click click click click*

I'm no worm expert, but it doesn't look like a fireworm to me. There are tons of polychaetes out there, so let me reiterate not a worm expert (Just an enthusiast).

 

[Chris Jakubowski]

Looks like I'm in the minority. Y'all can have all the bristle worms out there. haha.

I cannot stand them. One turns into hundreds.

I kid you not I had a 14g BioCube I kept a Green Clown-Goby in along with a couple of shrimp. When I took the tank down I found a bristle worm at least a foot long hidden behind the false wall.

I'll pluck them out of the tank any chance I get.

Think of all the crap i must've ate from your tank to be able to grow to that size!

 

[Captain Quint]

Think of all the crap i must've ate from your tank to be able to grow to that size!

Haha. You can still have them, my friend.

 

[totalbiz]

Go on then explain to us how they are "extreme pests", they only take food that is dead or dying, they only grow to large numbers if you are massivly overfeeding and they are not "predators" as you claim in your next post.
You seem to be one of the snowflake generation that is scared of anything that does not look nice and fluffy.
Thanks for the video that shows how NOT to feed a scolly, feeding LPS foods that are too large for them causes it to just sit inside the coral and rot causing problems. That bristleworm did the scollys owner a huge favor and did you notice how the "predator" didn't harm the coral in any way?

I can't stand these things either. So you feel the need to insult everyone who has a different opinion than you? You know, instead of looking like a tough guy, you seem to me to be somewhat pathetic. I'm terribly impressed that you aren't afraid of a worm.