Something hollowed out my slimer!

[SUS]

I’ve had his green slimer for about 10 months now. I’ve always noticed that on one of the branches something sticking out. It was always hard to see cause it was towards the back of the tank and didn’t seem to be causing any issues so I let it go. I would just notice a web like substance coming out of it (like that of a Vermitid snail) so though maybe it was that.

Well tonight I decide to investigate further and poked around on the branches tip and something moved! I then grabbed my bone cutters and snipped the tip off.

Turns out, whatever it is had been hollowing out the coral for some time. I should note that it looks perfectly healthy and is growing fine.

Here is there hollowed out tip

And this is what I saw move. The little red disk on the left acted as a shield when I poked it. It sunk into the tip and that disk “capped” it off

 

[SUS]

 

[SUS]

Here is what the coral looks like where I cut it off. You can see the hole continues down. So I’m not sure if that was all of him or if he’s still living down in there or what. Anyone seen anything like this before?

 

[tangtime]

That’s some craziness there, never seen that before haha

 

[Scorpius]

Interesting...

 

[Sobiech]

Wow never seen that before I’ll be following along to see if anyone can ID that creature

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

I think it’s a vermetid, and I think the coral encrusted over the tube as it grew, not that the vermetid hollowed it out.

 

[SUS]

I think it’s a vermetid, and I think the coral encrusted over the tube as it grew, not that the vermetid hollowed it out.

Maybe so. It’s a good 1/4” diameter hole though. Seems large to be a vermetid tube?

 

[Mr.Rocc]

I had a smaller hole in my seasons greetings Monti. But same situation I took it off and the hole continued down.

 

[reef lover]

Strange... #reefsquad

 

[Dsnakes]

Maybe so. It’s a good 1/4” diameter hole though. Seems large to be a vermetid tube?

That does sound the most likely. I recently cut a large vermetid off of my Trachy.

 

[tastyfish]

That's really interesting. A Vermatid or some form of tube worm perhaps? There are rock boring worms, but I think that's unlikely. The living part of the coral is the thin layer of interconnecting tissue which covers the calcinous skelton, so unlikley to be harming the coral at all.

I have had several acropora which seemed to "contain" a barnacle of some sort, which extended it's feeding legs through the hole around which the coral had grown.

 

[DSC reef]

Wondering if gall crabs are found in acropora?

 

[tastyfish]

Wondering if gall crabs are found in acropora?

Yes, gall crabs inhabit any stony coral that they can find or make a hole in.

 

[29bonsaireef]

Imo, that was a feather duster or christmas tree worm. Its dead now, but they live inside stony corals.. totally harmless to the coral. They create those polished smooth tunnels in the coral as they host it.

 

[29bonsaireef]

Here is an example off the web. Barnacle will also make similar tunnels in the corals. Crabs will not usually have cylindrical tunnels like these and will not be as smooth on the inner portion, unless they are hosting a vacant hole created by one of creatures.
.

 

[rosshamsandwich]

I think it’s a vermetid, and I think the coral encrusted over the tube as it grew, not that the vermetid hollowed it out.

this

 

[Reefpharmer]

I’ve seen this and it’s a barnacle imo