feather duster not coming out

[lori]

Hi everyone i just got a dwarf pink and white feather duster and it wont come out.in my tank for almost two days, this morning the opening area is starting to go a little limpI got a hawiian feather duster five days ago and it only took ten min for it to come out...?Is my pink one ok.......can it take a few days to come out?Its placed in the sand with med water flow.To tell you all about my tank its a 92 gal corner tank.Its got the nova extreme pro 10,000k t5 lighting,3" live sand about 50lbs of live rock.My tank is 1yr 6months old.please help me on some advice on my pink and white feather duster Thank you

[Bloodydecks]

a few things you may want to check. Dusters can be sensitive to nitrates.

Was it exposed to the air and if so, did you make sure that there were no air pockets in the worms casing/tube?

Also, they like very high water flow, but you don't want to drill them with a power head or return valve.

Also, if the worm was unhappy with its location, it may have left it tube in search of a better location.

Also, I have had tangs peck at the cap of the worm, causing them to "toss their cap". What other fish do you have in the tank?

[lori]

in my tank i have a green chromi,royal grammy,two black and white clowns,and a blenny that i forgot the name.algae eater not a lawnmower starts with a "k".have a hawaiin duster front left,star polyps on bottom center and put the pink duster to the right bottom.has a good amount of flow hitting them.how can it move?seems like it still in there just farther back.i made sure it did not hit the air when i put it in also.nitrates are fine also.should i move it?can it go next to my hawaiian one?how do you know if its dead or it moved?thank you

[Bloodydecks]

feather duster are a worm. If they don't like the area they have been placed, they will leave/crawl out if the tub and find a different location where hey will regenerate a tube. I have had them move to areas where I could no longer see them...and found them weeks later during a maintenance or re-scapeing process.

One way you can check if the worm is still alive, simply lightly squeeze the casing/tube that the duster lives in. You should be able to feel is pull deeper into is tube. If you feel the duster, and doesn't move, it may or may not be dead. IF the tube feels empty, then most likely, is has moved.

IMO, the fish you listed, should not be an issue...maybe the clowns, but probably not.

Thats about the best i can do....maybe someone else can chime in.

What is your salinity level....and describe your acclimation.

[lori]

my salinity is 1.022 and i did a drip acclimation.thirty min.i just felt the tube feels kind of empty then lifted it,(has a 10" tube)and saw a slit toward the end what looked like a worm hanging out.i moved it by the other but think i bothered it to muchhope not

[Bloodydecks]

Sounds like it just may be having some acclimation issues....Now that you have it where you want, i would just leave alone and give some time.

Good luck, sorry i could not be of more help.

[lori]

does the whole tube need to be covered?i have very fine sand,its hard to cover.and you have given me good help.no problemthanx

[Steve McKay]

lori,the only real conditions you need for them is good circulation for the entire tank so the detritus will stay in suspension that is the majority of what they eat.Of course you need good flow on it for the food to reach it,but not to much as long as it's feathers are waving it should be fine.The feather duster could be repairing it's tube or other things give it time to come out,look down in the tube every once in a while.

[Bloodydecks]

does the whole tube need to be covered?i have very fine sand,its hard to cover.and you have given me good help.no problemthanx

no you don't need to cover the entire tube. the duster will work its way into the sand on its own, continuing to lengthen the tube.

[Steve McKay]

lori if you go to the thread "Looking for Spaghetti Worms" under your last post in post 36 you will find that I have apologized.

[lori]

i saw steve.thanx

[Steve McKay]

So how's the feather duster.

[lori]

pretty much the same.i had to leave for work at 9 thismorning so dont know yet.i put it right next to my hawaiian and the head kind of faces the rock next to it.im to scared of bothering it so im just going to leave it alone.when i picked it up last night it looked like it was coming out the back.hard to tell,its so thin and long and fragile.1st time having these guys.

[Steve McKay]

This might be a stupid question,but are you sure you have the right end buried? When you moved it,did you give them enough room so their crowns don't interfere with each other? Don't move it to much,you might induce further stress.As long as it is getting the right flow it will be alright.

[lori]

yes it is the right way and when i moved it,..it is a little close but i dont want to touch it anymore.was hard to burry i have very fine sand and the flow of the powerhead while trying to burry kept blowing the sand off.when i said i saw it out in the back i mean.....there was a slit about a inch from the bottom with what looked like a worm starting to hang out.it was not like that when i put it in at first.also i did not mention it did come out for about three min an hour after i put it in then it went back in,never to be seen again.it was blowing pretty good,maybe to much.i cant see inside it either its to thin.just dont know what to dowant to move a little but know i should'nt

[Steve McKay]

I would move it one more time,away from the other one (less competition for food too). With not to much flow and then leave it ALONE. I have had feather dusters,right now I have a coco worm and sometimes he goes in for a while probably house cleaning or something.

[lori]

moved it today and OMG its aliveits hanging out at the end though?riped through the end.when i moved it,it definatly moved also insidescared me at firstwill it keep its tube?or build a new one?

[Steve McKay]

Don't know,it will do what it want's to.Just let it be and it will be fine.Great!

[lori]

it showed its feathers todaywas when lights went out and was only 5 min it was outstill blowing pretty good on it?

[Steve McKay]

Great!What ever you do don't move him again,if you want to move him again wait a month or so.He's probably a little stressed by now,Look at the way it's crown (feathers) move and reduce the flow if needed,but don't move him.You can't really target feed a feather duster or coco worm because if it senses any large food item it will retreat into it's tube.but if you have some form of food like frozen formula-one that when mixed with water dissolves into very fine particles,that will work either pour it into the tank or if you have a feeding device squirt a little at a time upstream and let it flow to it.I would just put some in the tank and let it circulate.If you have corals you can use the same food you feed them to feed the feather duster.BTW I looked at your album and would like to see more photos,I also saw the DSC designation which means you have a Sony camera.What kind do you have?I have the Sony DSCH50B.