I.D. please

[mr_X]

this morning the lights came on, and i witnessed a tiny worm(about 1/2 inch) crawling down the glass headed to the sand bed. he is white, and from the naked eye, looks smooth. after reviewing the pics, he has spines/legs, and a noticable head. here he is:

:?

 

[IrradiatedReef]

Looks like a small bristle worm to me. My Orchid Dotty likes these for afternoon snacks ;D

 

[mr_X]

it's not a bristleworm. not the typical variation anyway. 2 suggestions so far were "Its a member of the Dorvilleidae, harmless algae and detritus grazer" and "Looks like a syllid. They suck the juice out of sessile inverts, but they aren't likely to hurt anything you want in your tank. I wouldn't worry too much about it."

 

[poconofishy]

Re: I.D. please... A hirudinean, a marine leech

Is a marine leech. I would remove. More here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fshwrmdisfaqs.htm

 

[mladencovic]

I would also go with Dorvilleidae. Head antennae are clearly visible. As for the leeches, do they have setae (bristles/"legs")? I don't remember seeing any with them.

 

[Hawkeye]

at half an inch in size - it's pretty difficult to give a firm id...you'd have to pull it out and get a good pic of the head. I dunno how you can distinguish that worm from one from the Dorvilleidae family or one from the Eunicidae family. Leave it be...or catch it for a better view.

 

[mladencovic]

at half an inch in size - it's pretty difficult to give a firm id...you'd have to pull it out and get a good pic of the head. I dunno how you can distinguish that worm from one from the Dorvilleidae family or one from the Eunicidae family. Leave it be...or catch it for a better view.

http://www.njreefers.org/forums/gallery/540_28_06_07_9_42_47.gif

You are right - it is very difficult to say for certain. However, from pic 2, it looks as if it has 2 main antenae and possibly another pair of smaller ones like http://www.nhm.ac.uk/research-curation/projects/taxinfo/browse/family/dorvilleidae.htm

Eunicidae, on the other hand, are supposed to have 0, 1, 3 or 5 antenae.

Of course pic is not detailed enough, so, in the end, I am still guessing and can be something completely different :

 

[mr_X]

sorry peeps, that worm is so small those pics are macro pics with the lense pressed against the glass. the camera's autofocus wouldn't even pick the worm up. i had to manually focus it. maybe less than a half inch..maybe a quarter inch. as i said, from the naked eye, it looked smooth.