Brown root like organism

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

It is thin looks like hair almost but it moves. I have not been able to make out any kind of structure or body that it comes out of. It moves from the rocks to the sand and I have seen it on the glass. Doesn't seem to bother anything. I have seen it retract a little when amphipods crawl on it. The area where it is thicker leaves a white residue (water movement washes it away fairly quickly).

Anyone know what it is?

Rob.D · Apr 3, 2016

It's most likely to be a spaghetti worm, totally harmless deteitovior (sp?).....

CastAway · Apr 3, 2016

That looks like cyano to me, if it's the brown coverage on the rock. Maybe I missed what the picture is actually of.

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

I was thinking that at first but I saw one on the glass today and it was completely out of the sand and it had no body... The one from the crappy photo above is gone. The spaghetti worm photos I have seen all have a body.. I cleaned my glass and didn't take a picture...

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

I have some better pictures on my Nikon, just being lazy about getting them off the card and up to photobucket. My coralline is still mostly green as I used treated base Rock (might be what you thought was cyano).

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

Ok see if this is better it's the tiny brown hairs in the middle of the picture. It spreads out to cover as far as 12".

Reeflogic · Apr 3, 2016

Do they look like this? If so, it's spaghetti worms, as Rob said, very reef safe and good to have. I have them all over the place. The body is rarely seen, they bury in rock or sand and just send out their tentacles or feeders to grab stuff.

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

I suppose it is possible but I don't think it looks like that... It looks finer to me than spaghetti worm tentacles and there seems to be alot more of them... Here is another crappy phone picture..

cloak · Apr 3, 2016

From the picture above it just looks like some type of algae IMO. If you have a small brush handy just give it a scrub & see what happens.

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

That's what I thought but it will be somewhere else in a few hours... Does some types of algae move that quickly? I had some on the glass and a magnet cleaner takes it right off.

cloak · Apr 3, 2016

Jeeper said:
That's what I thought but it will be somewhere else in a few hours... Does some types of algae move that quickly?

Under the right conditions, yes. Certain types of nuisance algae can pop up very quickly.
Aside from manual removal, limiting things like Phosphates, Nitrates & Silicates is usually your best bet. GL.

http://www.reefcleaners.org/nuisance-algae-id-guide

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

Hmm.... There is percievable movement from one place to another. I can see it move albeit very very slowly. This morning there was no sign of it anywhere now there are two different rocks with it on them. Does that every day. As far as my nitrates and phosphates they have never been measurable. I can't grow chaeto in my fuge... I have no fish in this tank and I broadcast feed my coral once a week. I suppose it could be some kind of algae, (the movement and behavior seems un plant like) but I'm leaning towards a worm or large group of worms....

cloak · Apr 3, 2016

Have you tried removing it with a brush yet? What happened? You could also use some airline tubing and siphon out what you can as well. A close up picture in a tupperware container would really help.

Jeeper · Apr 3, 2016

Just off the glass with the glass scrubber. It's on the glass now. It's a worm. There are some separate from the group. Bout 3/8 inch long the couple I have seen off the main trunk.

Steve Dillon · Apr 3, 2016

Get you a 6 line and it will take care of it if its a worm.. if he doesnt bother it you'll know its algea of sorts it does look like spaghetti worms though. Jmo