Will a red brittle star catch and eat fish?

[the6goat6man6]

Well it has been a while, been a very long summer. Glad to have a chance to come back here, just wish it wasn't for this reason.

I have two fish that are missing, both fire fish, 1 red and 1 purple. one day red was gone, next day purple was gone? But my mandirin and scotter (slow movers) are still around? not on the floor or any where else i could think to look.

I recently had two hairs die, one day apart, couple days before my fish dissapeared? i found them and dispossed of. weird one day apart? then the fish came up missing. puzzled?

 

[Faciosity]

I have never even heard of a red brittle star, but I know the green ones are fish eaters. Maybe it's a type of serpent star? I have a large purple one and a large black one that never bother anything unless it's already dead. They are great disposal units for your clean up crew! Got any pictures for a more positive ID?

 

[Faciosity]

Since you had several deaths/disappearances in a short time, I would guess that you have a different issue. What's your water perameters? Have you changed anything or added anything recently?

 

[the6goat6man6]

Sorry it took soo long to get back, holidays and everything.

I don't think it is the red star anymore. A couple nights ago I was spying after dark with the trusty red light. I almost had a heart attack! I saw a worm, about half inch thick! But I lost it before I could get my gloves and stuff, being it was on the rock on the bottom. So, I wait and watch looking for it again.

The day after I posted this thread my tang was found the next morning, on the bottom of the tank! I don't get it! All three fish were fast swimmers and gone, I have a mandirin goby and scooter blenny that are still swimming around (fat)!?

Water perameters are great. Everything is right on except Mag is alittle low and dkh could be alittle higher.

 

[BigAl07]

Remember that many "Fast Swimmers" are slow and low at night in their "Night Time" mode so they can become prey to many predators. Any chance you can find a picture of the worm in question?

Does it resemble this Eucinid worm

 

[Skimmy]

well it could still possibly be the brittle, or your worm...
have you made a trap to set up at night???
u can make one out of a baited small coke bottle

 

[the6goat6man6]

Remember that many "Fast Swimmers" are slow and low at night in their "Night Time" mode so they can become prey to many predators. Any chance you can find a picture of the worm in question?

Does it resemble this Eucinid worm

I think that might be it. I have been watching the worm i first saw. Then i started to notice more, night by night. Then last night i found one that went from the back of my tank under a big rock and out the other side. This worm looked different than most fire worms in my tank. Most have a round head, with bristles all over (bristle worm duh, i like fire worm better, lol). This new one didn't, has like these legs, like a centipede. Like yellowish color, head kind of like a snake, not sure what the mouth looks like, might be sucker like, it doesn't look like other worms!-----OK, so i pinned my rocks together! it looks like it is under the rock not throught it. I put my gloves on and stood on a chair. With shaking hands and pounding chest, I reached in, grabed the rock moved it, and grabed he worm. Wow, never seem one like this. Working on pics, kind of want to keep it alive. I have it in a chinese food soup cup with 12hr water changes for now. Will get back ASAP. Thank you everyone, hope someone can ID this thing, got a cool vid on phone!

 

[the6goat6man6]

well it could still possibly be the brittle, or your worm...
have you made a trap to set up at night???
u can make one out of a baited small coke bottle

The only reason i thought it might be the red brittle, is it perches across rocks, like the green death. never seen it do anything.

 

[the6goat6man6]

[/URL][/IMG]if it works? here it is, not the best pick, it is scared right now. got it in the dark to get a better one.

 

[the6goat6man6]

can you see it's legs, not bristles!

 

[the6goat6man6]

[/URL][/IMG]
here with a light under neith to show legs

 

[the6goat6man6]

the top pic, that is it's rear end. not head, he's camera shy

 

[the6goat6man6]

Remember that many "Fast Swimmers" are slow and low at night in their "Night Time" mode so they can become prey to many predators. Any chance you can find a picture of the worm in question?

Does it resemble this Eucinid worm

This pic is on a beach, if it's real, can they come out of the water?

 

[1guydude]

bobbit worm right? They can eat things if they get big enough like ur centipede creature?!?!

 

[the6goat6man6]

this thing is about as round as a pencil, and 12inches long when small. it stretches to about 2 feet. think it could take down 2 fire fish and a yellow tang (3in). The tang was found but not the firefish. They are MIA.

Also, when i caught it, it released a redish brown slimey looking stuff as it knotted itself. after it stoped i changed the water. This morning will changing the water i used my turkey baster to suck the red stuff out. but it wouldn't suck up and i wasn't touching it. there was a completly clear "ball" all the way around this red stuff and it wouldn't suck up, was also kind of attached to the worm. anyways i got that stuff out, it was like gelled water?????

 

[the6goat6man6]

ok, been trying to get a good pic of it's head and just can't. won't come out. but after watching it for a while, it's legs have like two little fingures. like each leg is actuallly 2, but connected at the top? if that makes sense.

Should i get into the invert section and try to get and ID? I kind of like it, might set up a tank for this guy. Not sure what else to do with it, don't want to kill it. It might sound strange, but I don't like to hurt any animals. They are only trying to live, nothing else. So who am i to judge this WORM? So maybe a species tank? But can this thing come out of the water????

 

[the6goat6man6]

Never got a good pic of head, just wouldn't cooperate.

But just say an em. crab chase something in the dark. he was moving fast with claws up. looked like he was after a meal? I know what they say about crabs and i beleive it, but didn't think em. crab would. they have cups on their claws not points, thought that was for algae? am i wrong?

 

[the6goat6man6]

NO thoughts on the em. crab?

Well, the RB star is making me wonder!? I was just looking around, watching the night creeper. I see the star "perched", with it's legs holding it suspended off the ground. She had a couple legs up on a rock and the others on the ground. Suspended and not moving, during the day she is neatly tucked in a hole, with leg tips out. At night I have noticed her "perched", and a couple times during the day I have seen her under a rock in a dark area, "perched". when I purched this star, it was in a large tank with many others, most were green death. Lots of them, maybe 30, is it possible my RB star "learnred" to perch and catch fish????? Is that a ridiculous thought??? I don't know? Luckily, my last two fish haven't perished or been made a meal!? I look every night, only bristle worms, one descent size. Only thing I can think of is the em. crab or RB star!??