What is this black worm with white dots?

[cillam]

So I have a piece of now dead coral I dont want to throw it as it has a bunch of stuff on it, feather dusters, and a turnicate.

Today while feeding my coral and having all pumps off is notice this black and white worm looking thing moving.

Any idea of what this is??

 

[BristleWormHater]

Medusa worm of some kind, I'll get you some info on them in a second post. @ISpeakForTheSeas can give you some too

 

[BristleWormHater]

Medusa worms are a type of sea cucumber and are generally considered reef safe; they are safe around fish and coral. The only issue you may run into is that just like sea cucumbers, if they are unhappy they will self-destruct and release toxins into the water that are deadly to fish and coral, at that size it likely won't have that devastating effect though.

 

[cillam]

Medusa worms are a type of sea cucumber and are generally considered reef safe; they are safe around fish and coral. The only issue you may run into is that just like sea cucumbers, if they are unhappy they will self-destruct and release toxins into the water that are deadly to fish and coral, at that size it likely won't have that devastating effect though.

Okay that's good to know, when stretched out its about 10mm in length so pretty small.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Medusa worm of some kind, I'll get you some info on them in a second post. @ISpeakForTheSeas can give you some too

Not a medusa worm in this case, but a peanut worm (Sipunculan) - I'm not well-versed in specific species yet, but they're harmless/beneficial.

They are remarkably similar to sea cucumbers in a lot of ways, though, but they're (thankfully) not toxic to other livestock when stressed.

 

[BristleWormHater]

Not a medusa worm in this case, but a peanut worm (Sipunculan) - I'm not well-versed in specific species yet, but they're harmless/beneficial.

They are remarkably similar to sea cucumbers in a lot of ways, though, but they're (thankfully) not toxic to other livestock when stressed.

Got it!