Can anyone ID this for me

[arronpoh]

So this brown soft tubes that bunch together have been appearing everywhere on my rocks, they can be easily dislodged by a turkey baster but they seem to be growing more rapidly and everywhere. Feels soft to the touch and can be pulled out easily

 

[Formulator]

Hi, welcome to Reef2Reef! If you can post a picture we can help ID, but the description alone is too broad.

For future reference, the “emergency” tag is not really intended for something like this. That is for things like “my fish is laying on the sand dying” or “my tank is leaking” type things where you absolutely need an immediate reply to save lives. You’re new, so you get a pass on this one

 

[arronpoh]

Apologies! Didn’t know how the emergency thing worked.

 

[Kweezy12]

looks like vermatid snails to me

 

[arronpoh]

Hi, welcome to Reef2Reef! If you can post a picture we can help ID, but the description alone is too broad.

For future reference, the “emergency” tag is not really intended for something like this. That is for things like “my fish is laying on the sand dying” or “my tank is leaking” type things where you absolutely need an immediate reply to save lives. You’re new, so you get a pass on this one

They’re very soft and can flushed off with a turkey baster

looks like vermatid snails to me

 

[Formulator]

No worries! Those look like feather dusters to me. They are harmless filter feeders and common in lower flow areas of the rock. They are generally good and part of a healthy reef. If they bother you, you can continue manual removal but it will likely be a losing battle.

I don’t agree with this:

looks like vermatid snails to me

Vermatids do not branch like that, are typically shorter, and with hard shells, not soft as the OP described.

 

[arronpoh]

No worries! Those look like feather dusters to me. They are harmless filter feeders and common in lower flow areas of the rock. They are generally good and part of a healthy reef. If they bother you, you can continue manual removal but it will likely be a losing battle.

I don’t agree with this:

Vermatids do not branch like that, are typically shorter, and with hard shells, not soft as the OP described.

Not exactly sure what they are, but they don’t look like feather dusters from what I gathered online. They seem and feels like an algae but form weird tube like shapes that resembles a sponge

 

[Formulator]

Not exactly sure what they are, but they don’t look like feather dusters from what I gathered online. They seem and feels like an algae but form weird tube like shapes that resembles a sponge

There are tons of tube worm species we group as “feather dusters” in the hobby. Some are soft like that. See Sabellidae, for example.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-05/rs/

 

[Formulator]

Take a look at them after lights out and see if tentacles or a fan come out to eat. That will tell you for sure, if still in doubt.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Apologies! Didn’t know how the emergency thing worked.

Tube worms likely and emit fans to capture food

 

[Dburr1014]

looks like vermatid snails to me

Not at all

 

[Dburr1014]

OP, you may find they are bad now but the population will decrease as the system matures.

 

[arronpoh]

OP, you may find they are bad now but the population will decrease as the system matures.

Crazy thing is my system is already 2 years old, they showed up about 5-6 months ago and have been growing everywhere, specifically dead coral skeleton

 

[arronpoh]

Just another picture of the issue I have, appreciate if I could get an ID of it. My lfs don’t know what this as it isn’t a type of feather duster

 

[arronpoh]

Might look hard but the texture of this feels like a pineapple sponge

 

[Dburr1014]

Spionid worms? I see the 2 tentacles coming out. I don't think they multiply that fast though. Must be in the family. Not something you want.

@ISpeakForTheSeas what do you think?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Spionid worms? I see the 2 tentacles coming out. I don't think they multiply that fast though. Must be in the family. Not something you want.

@ISpeakForTheSeas what do you think?

Those are sediment and mucus based tubes (typically described as feeling leathery); judging from the tentacles sticking out, they're either worm tubes (not feather dusters) or amphipods.

Personally, I'm leaning toward amphipods. Either way, they're likely primarily suspension/filter-feeders that may hunt smaller critters on occasion.