Worms in tank?

[67RedDonzi]

Ok so I have found several worms living in the substrate of my DT. They are long (2" or more), white, and very thin. What are these? are they bad? if so how do I get rid of them? I flipped a snail over today and about 5 worms were hanging on to the body and half in the gravel...I think they were eating the dead snail

 

[WhoKnew]

Sounds like bristle worms. Can you take a picture?

 

[Reefing Madness]

Part of the clean up crew, no worries. Sounds like Bristle Worms

 

[67RedDonzi]

I have seen one bristle worm in the tank a few months back. The new worms however are definitely not bristle worms. They are completely smooth (kind of like a very skinny earth worm). I will try to get a picture when I find one again (no guarantees that my phone will be clear enough though, these guys are thin)

 

[67RedDonzi]

I found a pic online of what the worms look like but im having trouble posting it

 

[67RedDonzi]

Ha never mind, there it is. So they look very similar if not the same as this

 

[67RedDonzi]

the only difference is that I cannot see any bristles on the worms in my tank at all (the largest worm in the pic I posted seems to have very faint ones)

 

[Reefing Madness]

Maybe a Peanut Worm

 

[DaveMorris]

I am a firm believer in leaving all of those types of creatures alone. They are a valuable part of the clean crew that rid your tank of dead stuff.

 

[TriggerThis]

I have those in my tank, mainly Bc I feed a ton of food in my tank all the time. I understand they're just regular tube worms. My sand is solid with them

 

[67RedDonzi]

Thank you for the replies. I was concerned because it seemed like the worms had been eating my snails. Was this just a weird coincidence and I should leave them alone?

 

[Dalmatia]

Thank you for the replies. I was concerned because it seemed like the worms had been eating my snails. Was this just a weird coincidence and I should leave them alone?

If underfed, a Bristol worm will steal food from coral or eat inverts (that's if big).
Personally I've my self seen one take food from a coral I target fed!!! After that it was war

 

[Reefing Madness]

Thank you for the replies. I was concerned because it seemed like the worms had been eating my snails. Was this just a weird coincidence and I should leave them alone?

Bigger ones should be removed from the system, as they can cause issues. But as for them eating a live snail, no, it was dead when they got to it.

 

[PatW]

There are a whole bunch of different kinds of worms. Most are beneficial serving as a supplement to the clean up crew and increasing flow through the sand bed and live rock.