What are these things? Red

[JRSE7EN]

 

[JRSE7EN]

I have two of these I found on my live rock order today. They slowly fill up with water then expel. Looks like they have a mouth at the end. Very freaky!

 

[NowGlazeIT]

What on gods blue earth is that!!??

 

[NowGlazeIT]

 

[JRSE7EN]

I’m starting to think “Red Sea Squirt”. Maybe they’re dying?

 

[JGT]

Tunicates.

 

[NowGlazeIT]

I’m starting to think “Red Sea Squirt”. Maybe they’re dying?

I think you nailed it!

 

[JGT]

Which are tunicates. They take in water on one end and expel out the other end. They are not dying. That’s how they feed.

 

[NowGlazeIT]

Which are tunicates. They take in water on one end and expel out the other end. They are not dying. That’s how they feed.

Thank you for going into detail, I learned something new for the day.

 

[Vested]

I like the aliens theory lets go with that lol

 

[NowGlazeIT]

I like the aliens theory lets go with that lol

A close cousin at least right!?

 

[Vested]

A close cousin at least right!?

definitely might be some face huggers hiding inside

 

[JRSE7EN]

Well now I know what they are; I’m assuming they’re reef safe? What’s the best way to care for them? One is attached to a piece of rock. The other I can place anywhere. Target feed?

 

[JGT]

Yes, typical on live rock. They are filter feeders. Nothing special needs to be done. They will catch little bits when you feed your fish.

 

[Tired]

Filter-feeding animals don't do well in reef tanks without specialized feeding. Tunicates larger than a fingernail generally die off over time. You can try giving them plankton foods like phyto, but be aware they're not the hardiest animal. Target feed, and if possible, place them in a spot that gets a decent amount of flow. Not full-on SPS current, but enough flow to run lots of plankton past them.

They're reef safe, yeah. They have no ability to harm anything. Except maybe if you've got a really small tank and they start rotting and dirty it up.