Tiny white worms with red feathers

[dtruitt]

We got a piece of live rock from a local reefer that is covered in these tiny white worms with red feathers. I'm assuming they are feather worms, but I'm curious what species and how big they could get under the right conditions.

Thanks!

 

[Rybren]

Don't know the species, but yes, they're harmless feather dusters that tend to stay small.

 

[Nosaj82]

We got a piece of live rock from a local reefer that is covered in these tiny white worms with red feathers. I'm assuming they are feather worms, but I'm curious what species and how big they could get under the right conditions.

Thanks!

I have something similar and when I posted the question here the response was a type of feather duster. No harm to the tank and are food filter feeders.
I am no expert by any means so let’s see what other have to say. I’m not sure about the size capabilities.

 

[dtruitt]

Don't know the species, but yes, they're harmless feather dusters that tend to stay small.

They're neat little critters. Is there anything I can do to help them grow larger?

 

[eraserhead187]

I think that feather dusters need live phytoplankton to stay alive long term. I had a rock with a bunch on it, but they all eventually either starved or got eaten by my coral beauty.

 

[flsalty]

They're neat little critters. Is there anything I can do to help them grow larger?

Steroids...kidding. If you are lucky they will reproduce into a nice colony, but the worms themselves don't get any bigger. Possibly Filograna implexa.

 

[Bfragale]

Most I have in my tank have white colored “feathers”. I have also seen black ones. They seem to all stay pretty small. I have 1 that is bright orange that came in on a recent zoa covered rock I got. I absolutely love it and would love to see it reproduce. But I doubt it will last too long as my coral beauty usually snatched the ones she can reach. But one of the only hitchhikers I don’t mind getting. Hope yours reproduces. In my experience: in established reef tanks, there’s usually enough “food” for them to survive and thrive . I have never added anything specifically for the dusters and they seem to do really well. Until I got the coral beauty that is.. I still have a lot but most that left and deeper in the rocks and crevices.

I feed reef roids and rods food and some misis 3 x a week-target feeding corals. Fish and inverts get what corals dont. A few drops of phytoplankton 1x or 2x a week. So there’s a lot in my tank for them to feed on.

they seem to survive coral RX and fresh water dip.