Filaments & 'legs'??

[maffu]

On a mushroom rock I bought today there are a few other things I need ID'ing please!! The usual stuff is all on there.. but two things I cant capture on camera (due to zoom blur)are mystifying me....

Firstly.... On one edge of the rock I have a number of thin straight brittle looking filaments... (approx 2 cm long) they reflect light into a multitude of colours... any ideas as to what these may be?

Secondly... from a number of holes in the rock are tiny banded 'legs'. These look like tiny (about 0.5-1.0 cm) long serpent star legs ... just poking out and wafting in the flow. They do not 'spook' like tube\fan worms but only withdraw if you touch them.... in an approximate 2 inch bit of rock I counted at least 8 sets of legs from different holes.

Could they simply be tiny serpent stars?



Thanks for your help

Matt

[Travis]

On the second one, very well could be serpents. On the first, really need a pic to tell.

[Witfull]

the first is prolly a fan worm of some sort but with out a pic hard to say exactly what.

the little stars are they these?
if so they are mini brittle stars that will live insde the rock fishing for bits and pieces. they are fine and safe.

[Witfull]

the first is prolly a fan worm of some sort but with out a pic hard to say exactly what.

the little stars are they these?

if so they are mini brittle stars that will live insde the rock fishing for bits and pieces. they are fine and safe.

[maffu]

Spot on picture Wifull... excellent... better camera man than I!!! thats exactly what the little chaps look like...

crumbs... looks like I am learning! my hunch was right!

the first question .... hmm I am not convinced I am gonna get a decent picture but I will try.

Thanks for your help and support fellas

Matt

[maffu]

I have a picture... but its too big to post at 608 kb??

[Curtswearing]

Maffu,

Hopefully one of these tools will help you.....

If you have Windows XP, then download their image resizer >>HERE<<

There are also free programs like GIMP

I'm not really good at the photos so someone else might have a better idea.

[maffu]

ok due to curtswearing's magic... here should be a smaller pic!

[maffu]

hmmm the filaments only just show top right...

but they almost look like tiny fibre optics... ignore the thick line thats a mini-serpent leg.... as per witfull's good catch

Incidentally... not having kept mushies before... I came home today to find them all about three times the size of them as they are in the image.... guess thats normal right??!!

Matt

[maffu]

Excuse me for exclaiming a Yipeee... I just successfully editted something!

Heres a 'closeup'.... sad arent I!!!

[maffu]

And while I am at it heres the main shot.....

Put the LR in on 28th Feb, and cycled it while curing....so still young yet... but here is is...

[Curtswearing]

It's hard to say. It looks like 2 bristleworms and possibly some spaghetti worms. It's always hard to judge though.

Regardless, I like your aquascaping.

[steve-s]

The parts circled in red look like they are a type of banded serpent star. The filaments circled in blue look like they could be either the beginnings of some sort of tunicate or more likey a type of foraminifera.



Cheers
Steve

[maffu]

Thanks everyone plenty of research leads there... I am happy that I have some little serpent stars. I will look up the foraminifera- I have no idea what that is so should be interesting!

Curtswearing thanks for your help both on topic and technically with the photo jazz!

And thanks for the compliment on the aquascaping... the photo doesnt show it too well... but there is an open cavern on the left.... which the cleaner shrimps spend most of the day upside down! The peppermints prefer the smaller cave on the right as the cleaner shrimps rarely go in there!!!

I have tried to build a patch reef- there is open sand all the way round the rockwork... allthough at the back I have created a slight over hang for things to dip down the back and hide, while also trying to give plenty of swim space....

Hopefully as I add more corals... I will pick up more rock and bulkl it up a bit more but so far I am pleased.... still early days... nearly 2 months old now!

Thanks again all

Matt

[Boomer]

Matt

The other part of you image, which Steve-5 circled in blue, looks like a colony of "hedgehog" Hydroids. However,the image is poor so Steve could be right ,as they do look like some semi-transparent sea squirts by the out-line