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Another question for those out ther more learned than me. I have some polyps on a rock that appear to be leaking a long whitish/clear string from time to time. What is it? Is it harmful? I'll try to attach a pic if I can ever figure out how to make one 100k or smaller.

As usual, any answers and help are greatly appreciated!

Sorry, no pics. the camera won't pick it up because it is so fine.

Those are streamers, they are part of the coral. They sweep out to catch food.



Dan

Really? UH-OH! I pulled them off today. They appear to be 2 - 3 inches long. The polyps are free forming, not part of a coral colony. Is that still the same thing?

It may be best to let DRO answer that.



Dan

sounds to me like the coral is just shedding mucus to clean itself.....If it is coming out of the mouth then it is just replacing zooxanthellae and is shedding the dead for new.

Here is an article that explains what zooxanthellae is.

http://www.uvi.edu/coral.reefer/zooxanth.htm

I was mistaken. The strings are not coming from the polyps. I have what appears to be two (hard?) tubes on a piece of live rock at opposite ends of the rock. The tubes have, at one end, what looks like a cross between a tubeworm, a spider, and a crab in it. Confused yet? I sure as am! I am almost positive it is not a spaghetti worm or a sea squirt just because of the little legs/mouth parts/tentacles in it. I watched it attach what looked like a piece of poo to a string and continue to feed the string out litle by little. Sorry about the lack of photos, but I can't zoom in enough to make it visible in the detail you need to see it in to believe this thing!

As always, any info is appriciated and can only help me.

read this thread.

http://fishprofiles.com/interactive/forums/thread.asp?id=46201

I just saw that!! I think that is what it is. Please look at that threa for more Q's.

I posted in the other thread also.....

If they dont have the hard tube then they are most likely Spaghetti worms.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-06/rs/