Ron Reefman
Lets Go Snorkeling!
Reef Squad
Excellence Award
Reef Tank 365
Article Contributor
Tampa Bay Reef Keepers
MAC of SW Florida
I brought home a small green clump of Caulerpa that was washed up on the beach yesterday on Sanibel Island (SW Florida). I knew there was other live 'stuff' in the algae, but I did find a surprise. There are a few very small mollusks, one small sand dollar and a couple of small NPS anemones, but those are not really a surprise. There was a small (so I'm guessing young) sea hare. Although a cool animal to collect, not a real big surprise either.
The surprise was found moving around the bottom of the little tank I have the Caulerpa in. At first I thought it was a worm of some kind, and based on the movement of the tentacles around its mouth, I assumed it wasn't something I want in my reef. But my research administrator (my wife) found something that seems to describe this thing pretty darn well and the literature says it's a type of sea cucumber! It's in the Order: Apodida and the Family: Synaptdae and it's called a Synaptula Hydriformis.
Here is the link to the animal we think this is: https://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Synaptula_hydriformis.htm
Here are a couple of photos, not the best, but it's all I have right now. The first photo has the animal on a piece of red algae and just above a small (about 1.5" diameter) sand dollar and the hole is the normal hole you see in the top of a sand dollar.
The surprise was found moving around the bottom of the little tank I have the Caulerpa in. At first I thought it was a worm of some kind, and based on the movement of the tentacles around its mouth, I assumed it wasn't something I want in my reef. But my research administrator (my wife) found something that seems to describe this thing pretty darn well and the literature says it's a type of sea cucumber! It's in the Order: Apodida and the Family: Synaptdae and it's called a Synaptula Hydriformis.
Here is the link to the animal we think this is: https://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Synaptula_hydriformis.htm
Here are a couple of photos, not the best, but it's all I have right now. The first photo has the animal on a piece of red algae and just above a small (about 1.5" diameter) sand dollar and the hole is the normal hole you see in the top of a sand dollar.
Last edited:
20181028_195212_637669609487494
