What is living on my toadstool??!

[reefaman]

There is this small crabbish looking thing living on my toadstool sometimes it looks as if it emitting cobwebs has anyone had any experience with this??

It looks to be like a tick or something can someone let me know if this is detrimental

 

[Dany3350]

It's a tube worm they are harmless but produce a silk to trap derbies and eat them,given the opportunity they will multiply out of control to the point they can irritate corals with there web imo it's best not to keep it.

 

[Coastie Reefer]

Looks like the calcified house for a fan worm. If so, harmless filter feeder.

 

[cloak]

Vermetid snail most likely.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rs/index.php

 

[WetWhistle]

If it is emitting cobweb like stuff it is a Vermetid snail. The article about is a good one on them. To be honest some people think they cause issues with corals and they get all paranoid about them but in my experience them causing an issue is not very likely. If it does it is localized and needs a lot of mucus. As the webs are easily eaten by the coral and Vermetid snail. I myself leave them unless it is clearly causing an issue. As the nets trap particulate matter and organics to it they are good water filterers.

 

[Coastie Reefer]

Vermetid snails have a spiral base like this

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Vermids have all sorts of crazy shapes to their tubes.

 

[WetWhistle]

Part of it could\can be in the leather and was overgrown with only a portion of the housing showing. (You can clearly see the opening being overgrown even now in the pic) as well a Vermetid snail that is newly attached or not to big has no spiral as this is laid down and it grows. So you will not see the spiral till it has grown and not all of them get the spiral. It depends on where they are attached and the sp.

Calcareous tube feather dusters don't put out mucus nets like the Vermetid snails do as they are related to Polychaete (bristle worms). The tube worms filter the water with their plume of about 40 feather-like radioles. Vermetid snails on the other hand cast out a mucus net and the mucus acts like a sticky trawling net that traps plankton and detritus that passes by.

Big difference between filtering the water and a mucus net.

 

[reefaman]

It's a tube worm they are harmless but produce a silk to trap derbies and eat them,given the opportunity they will multiply out of control to the point they can irritate corals with there web imo it's best not to keep it.

Thank you guys for the replies very informative I think I will leave him for now I like to see development I'm my tank

Looks like the calcified house for a fan worm. If so, harmless filter feeder.

Vermetid snail most likely.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rs/index.php

If it is emitting cobweb like stuff it is a Vermetid snail. The article about is a good one on them. To be honest some people think they cause issues with corals and they get all paranoid about them but in my experience them causing an issue is not very likely. If it does it is localized and needs a lot of mucus. As the webs are easily eaten by the coral and Vermetid snail. I myself leave them unless it is clearly causing an issue. As the nets trap particulate matter and organics to it they are good water filterers.

Vermetid snails have a spiral base like this

Vermids have all sorts of crazy shapes to their tubes.

Part of it could\can be in the leather and was overgrown with only a portion of the housing showing. (You can clearly see the opening being overgrown even now in the pic) as well a Vermetid snail that is newly attached or not to big has no spiral as this is laid down and it grows. So you will not see the spiral till it has grown and not all of them get the spiral. It depends on where they are attached and the sp.

Calcareous tube feather dusters don't put out mucus nets like the Vermetid snails do as they are related to Polychaete (bristle worms). The tube worms filter the water with their plume of about 40 feather-like radioles. Vermetid snails on the other hand cast out a mucus net and the mucus acts like a sticky trawling net that traps plankton and detritus that passes by.

Big difference between filtering the water and a mucus net.