"Caterpillar" ID

[miskairal]

Hi all,

I discovered something new in my tank last night and have just spent an
hour trying to find it on the net but I'm not even sure what type of
critter it is and there is soooo much at wet web media and I'm on dialup
and it takes ages to get through it all. I've also taken a look at
Melev's reef and reefs.org but I dont' seem to be getting even close.

This thing is yellowish brown in colour (like a wet chamois cloth), had
no claws or tentacles or anthing that I could see but I think it had a
few little "bumps" on it (not bristles). It looked very much like the
caterpillars that turn into butterflies and I saw about 10cm (4") of it.
It reversed up into the rock as soon as I put the torch on it but it was
like it concertina'd up into itself.

Can anyone point me in the right direction?

Thanks
miskairal

[miskairal]

Silkworm! That's what it looks like.

miskairal wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I discovered something new in my tank last night and have just spent an
> hour trying to find it on the net but I'm not even sure what type of
> critter it is and there is soooo much at wet web media and I'm on dialup
> and it takes ages to get through it all. I've also taken a look at
> Melev's reef and reefs.org but I dont' seem to be getting even close.
>
> This thing is yellowish brown in colour (like a wet chamois cloth), had
> no claws or tentacles or anthing that I could see but I think it had a
> few little "bumps" on it (not bristles). It looked very much like the
> caterpillars that turn into butterflies and I saw about 10cm (4") of it.
> It reversed up into the rock as soon as I put the torch on it but it was
> like it concertina'd up into itself.
>
> Can anyone point me in the right direction?
>
> Thanks
> miskairal

[Wayne Sallee]

It's a worm.

:-)

There is a species like what you described. They stay in
the rock, never coming completely out. They streach out
looking for food, and are able to quickly pull back in the
hole. Most worms are harmless, especialy if it is small.

Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets



miskairal wrote on 11/25/2005 5:04 PM:
> Hi all,
>
> I discovered something new in my tank last night and have just spent an
> hour trying to find it on the net but I'm not even sure what type of
> critter it is and there is soooo much at wet web media and I'm on dialup
> and it takes ages to get through it all. I've also taken a look at
> Melev's reef and reefs.org but I dont' seem to be getting even close.
>
> This thing is yellowish brown in colour (like a wet chamois cloth), had
> no claws or tentacles or anthing that I could see but I think it had a
> few little "bumps" on it (not bristles). It looked very much like the
> caterpillars that turn into butterflies and I saw about 10cm (4") of it.
> It reversed up into the rock as soon as I put the torch on it but it was
> like it concertina'd up into itself.
>
> Can anyone point me in the right direction?
>
> Thanks
> miskairal

[miskairal]

Thanks Wayne. I did a heap more searching after I posted this and
figured it was a worm by the end of about 2 hours. This one seems quite
big to me. I guess I'll just have to watch what happens.

Wayne Sallee wrote:
> It's a worm.
>
> :-)
>
> There is a species like what you described. They stay in the rock, never
> coming completely out. They streach out looking for food, and are able
> to quickly pull back in the hole. Most worms are harmless, especialy if
> it is small.
>
> Wayne Sallee
> Wayne's Pets
>
>
>
> miskairal wrote on 11/25/2005 5:04 PM:
>
>> Hi all,
>>
>> I discovered something new in my tank last night and have just spent
>> an hour trying to find it on the net but I'm not even sure what type
>> of critter it is and there is soooo much at wet web media and I'm on
>> dialup and it takes ages to get through it all. I've also taken a look
>> at Melev's reef and reefs.org but I dont' seem to be getting even close.
>>
>> This thing is yellowish brown in colour (like a wet chamois cloth),
>> had no claws or tentacles or anthing that I could see but I think it
>> had a few little "bumps" on it (not bristles). It looked very much
>> like the caterpillars that turn into butterflies and I saw about 10cm
>> (4") of it. It reversed up into the rock as soon as I put the torch on
>> it but it was like it concertina'd up into itself.
>>
>> Can anyone point me in the right direction?
>>
>> Thanks
>> miskairal

[Ann R]

Try googling "peanut worm". Their front section will retract into their
back section.
--
Ann R
"miskairal" <mehiding@Oz> wrote in message
u...
> Hi all,
>
> I discovered something new in my tank last night and have just spent an
> hour trying to find it on the net but I'm not even sure what type of
> critter it is and there is soooo much at wet web media and I'm on dialup
> and it takes ages to get through it all. I've also taken a look at Melev's
> reef and reefs.org but I dont' seem to be getting even close.
>
> This thing is yellowish brown in colour (like a wet chamois cloth), had no
> claws or tentacles or anthing that I could see but I think it had a few
> little "bumps" on it (not bristles). It looked very much like the
> caterpillars that turn into butterflies and I saw about 10cm (4") of it.
> It reversed up into the rock as soon as I put the torch on it but it was
> like it concertina'd up into itself.
>
> Can anyone point me in the right direction?
>
> Thanks
> miskairal

[miskairal]

I found a pic of one of these in my exploration but I don't think that's
it. Thanks though!

Ann R wrote:
> Try googling "peanut worm". Their front section will retract into their
> back section.