Kessil

ID of Egglike Bits

Don’t see any mucus or movement. A couple are on the glass so I marked position with wax pencil and will see tomorrow if they moved.
 
Still no mucus seen, but Monti spongodes looks like:
spongprob.jpg

I thought I had taken a better photo, but nope. For two days I came in early before any lights were on and removed the monti from the tank to check for nudibranchs and saw none. Today I blasted it well with SW and examined the debris. Not sure if these tiny snail creatures were on the frag or in the sand bits that were stuck to it. Is it just me or does it look like brown monti polyps are inside of the snails? Maybe just snail body inside of transparent shell? Looking like vermetids?
snailmagnify-2.jpg
 
MolaMola said:
Still no mucus seen, but Monti spongodes looks like:
View attachment 14171
I thought I had taken a better photo, but nope. For two days I came in early before any lights were on and removed the monti from the tank to check for nudibranchs and saw none. Today I blasted it well with SW and examined the debris. Not sure if these tiny snail creatures were on the frag or in the sand bits that were stuck to it. Is it just me or does it look like brown monti polyps are inside of the snails? Maybe just snail body inside of transparent shell? Looking like vermetids?
View attachment 14172
Click to expand...
Snail body inside tranparent shell, most likely. I have some clear ones that eventually will turn brown as they get older
 
I don't. Those in my tank tend to prefer crevices and dark places... like my powerhead. Weird creatures.

Every now and then, they start populating on my euphyllias. Usually not a problem until they get into those crevices

Btw, those things don't move... despite being called snails. So marking positions won't produce much observable signs
 
Also… what appears to be two different types of tube creatures sticking out from rock. First has feather duster-like tentacles sticking out. Second has white solid part like head that seems to move in and out a bit as if feeding. No mucus nets that I can see.

3F1C3DDC-25F1-44E9-B3B1-82218628658D.jpeg


80481C49-756F-4513-B592-63577603821B.jpeg
 
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Mini feather duster worms?
Vermetid snails?
Totally different snails on sand?
Wondering if I need to remove sand and start over, though pests probably in rock and on corals.
Also need to carefully inspect other tanks for these. When school closed in spring 2020 I shoved the contents of two small tanks and QT into the DT and frag tank, so things got all mixed up.
 
The latest pics look like mini feather dusters, which I like in my tank. Vermitids have that unique, dark colored, conical shell that I am not seeing in your pictures.
 
My bet is on vermetid snails; some of the older images show a spiral-like base and from that point on they build their tubular structure. The slimy-web is the giveaway.
If you plan on remivibg the sand, do it thin layers at a time to prevent some spike in unwanted nutrients or die-off.
I sort of spot a "lid/cover" sort of thing at the top of the tube which is what vermetid snails have as a sort of protecting themselves.
Careful if you stick your hand in there, those tubes are very sharp and can poke a pair of gloves with ease.
The whole snail can be pryed off the rock at the base but is quite a challenge. A problem is when they have reproduced tgat much where it's better to take the rock out and dry it.
 
You should email Dr Lesli Harris @ NHM in Los Angeles.

Leslie H. Harris

Leslie Harris has worked with the polychaete collection since 1988. Ms. Harris is an eminent authority on the marine flora and fauna of California, and has been instrumental in the acquisition of major private polychaete collections for the museum.
nhm.org nhm.org

She loves this stuff, loves helping kids... and she awesome!!
 
More info for anyone interested: ReefCleaners thinks those egg things could be foraminiferans and suggested they are harmless and can be left alone.
I also followed the suggestion of @BAYMAC and contacted Leslie Harris. Here is her info-filled response:
“The eggy things are foraminiferans, unicellular amoebas. Some create calcareous tests, some cover themselves with agglutinated sand/sponge spicules, debris, while others forego the protection and remain soft amorphous blobs with peudopodia. You'll need to find something that eats them that won't snack on your frags as well. (She also referenced the Shimek article above.)
As for the vermetid?/serpulid there's not enough detail to see what it is. Simple distinction is that a vermetid will create a string or net of mucus to catch food particles then reel it in, swallow it whole, digest the yummy bits, then repeat. They can take over a tank so not good. A serpulid has a fan or feathery crown to catch particles. They're not as invasive as vermetids and can be left alone unless one is positioned such that the fan irritates a frag's polyps.”

Super interesting. Now to find a crew to keep them in check. Also considering tearing down tank, ditching sand and maybe rock, and scrubbing every frag. Will look into the effect of chemical dipping. At least I know what to look into now! I had only known about foraminiferans as those cool little pink structures.
 
I think I may start with a diverse cleanup crew of hermits and snails (needs to be done regardless to get tank back on track) and see where it goes. The tank is 22 gal, so it is not a large scale endeavor whatever I do.
Also, I will be taking a closer look at the sand in the other tanks next week
 
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