Help ID the worm in reef tank

[biswajitdey13]

Seeking help in identifying this worm. I just saw them last night. But there were several of them (10-15). They came out after lights out. The size was pretty small - like 1 cm max. There were a few crawling on the walls and a few swimming in the water reaching out to the top - most probably to get some air.

 

[biswajitdey13]

Adding link to the youtube videos:

 

[biswajitdey13]

And the 2nd video in youtube:

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

There were a few crawling on the walls and a few swimming in the water reaching out to the top - most probably to get some air.

Not sure the kind from the video, but those are polychaetes, and the swimming ones are polychaete epitokes - the reproductive parts of the worms swimming up to spawn.

 

[biswajitdey13]

Thank you for the inputs. So these polychaetes and bristleworms are same thing?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Thank you for the inputs. So these polychaetes and bristleworms are same thing?

Polychaetes and Bristleworms are technically the same thing, but it's helpful to break them down further into categories like "normal" bristleworms, fireworms, Dorvilleid worms, Eunicide worms, etc. when possible.

Most polychaetes are helpful bristleworms, but a few are harmful.

 

[biswajitdey13]

Yes, that makes sense. I can see the photos of those different types. The only way I understand to break them down into the categories are by getting better photos from my tank and compare them with their photos. Is that a correct understanding? I am thinking that there is nothing to get worried at this point unless I see any impact to the corals.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Yes, that makes sense. I can see the photos of those different types. The only way I understand to break them down into the categories are by getting better photos from my tank and compare them with their photos. Is that a correct understanding? I am thinking that there is nothing to get worried at this point unless I see any impact to the corals.

Yeah - worm ID is tough, but photos of the head (which may or may not be attached to the epitoke) and/or clear microscope photos of the bristles can be particularly useful for identifying. The body shape and bristle shape (macroscopic) can sometimes tell us which kind of worm it is too, but not always.

Edit: To add, yeah, they're not typically anything to worry about unless snails start dying unexpectedly or you find them harassing corals.

 

[biswajitdey13]

Thank you so much for the inputs!