Need ID on a bristle worm

[Caesar Augustus]

I dont have a pic but they seem to have a red tip with a dark body. Are they ok? I know that all red is a bad thing but I have not seen a bi-colored bristle before. And takers on this one??
Keep the Faith,
Augustus

[Ninong]

Do a google image search using Eurythoe complanata and Hermodice carunculata so that you can see some pics. The first one is OK, the second one is NOT. (P.S. -- A bit of warning about using google image searches: Often times the pictures are incorrectly identified! So you have to sort of know what you are looking for so that you can recognize the incorrectly ID'd pics.)

You can also view a picture of one of my E. complanata in this thread: PLEASE HELP Bristle worms

[Caesar Augustus]

I don't think its either one of those ninong. These seem to be blue with about the last third of their body being pink or reddish? They don't seem to be harming the corals, but whenever I try to feed one of the corals a krill or something they swarm to the food? What would you do?

[Ninong]

I would leave them alone. More likely than not, they are harmless scavengers.

P.S. -- Did you notice the blue in my Eurythoe complanata bristleworms?

[Ninong]

Here is something else that I found interesting when I researched the topic of bristleworms before I ordered some for my tank:

Dr. Ron Shimek states that Eurythoe complanata is a harmless scavenger.

Fossa & Nilsen state that they eat corals. However, Fossa & Nilsen also say that there is a harmless species of Eurythoe that is characterized by a "blue streak" on its back.

I ordered a dozen Eurythoe complanata bristleworms from Inland-Aquatics. They identify them as Eurythoe complanata on their website. They were only about 1" long when I received them but they grew very, very fast. They can grow from 1" to 4" within six weeks. They all looked like the one in the picture I linked above -- they all have that "blue streak" on their backs.

Before I placed my order with Inland Aquatics, I raised the question in Dr. Ron's forum on Reef Central about the claim made by Fossa & Nilsen that E. complanata was not reef-aquarium safe. Dr. Ron replied that he was aware of their assertion but that the evidence did not support their position.

So... what's up, you ask. You tell me. I have what was sold as E. complanata but they have a "blue streak." Fossa & Nilsen say the ones with the "blue streak" are "harmless." Dr. Ron says "E. complanata is a harmless scavenger." I was unable to resolve this confusion using the image search feature on Google. In fact, that only added to the confusion. You would be amazed at how many pictures are incorrectly identified on the web.

[Caesar Augustus]

Thanks Ninong