Feather Duster (Sabellastarte spp.)

The Feather Duster, Sabellastarte spp., is a peaceful marine fan worm with a soft tube and a beautiful crown of feathery feeding tentacles. When extended, the crown filters fine suspended food from the water and adds gentle movement to reef aquariums. This is a non-photosynthetic invertebrate, so it does not rely on light for nutrition and should only be kept in mature marine systems where fine planktonic foods, stable water quality and suitable placement are available.

Common Name:
Feather Duster, Feather Duster Worm, Fan Worm, Sabellid Fan Worm, Tube Worm.

Scientific Name (Latin):
Sabellastarte spp.
Genus-level trade identification; exact species may vary.

Maximum Size:
Crown diameter can vary by species and specimen, but commonly around 5–15 cm across when fully extended. The soft tube may extend several centimetres into rockwork or substrate.

Water Type:
Marine

Origin / Natural Habitat:
Sabellastarte feather dusters occur in tropical marine reef and lagoon habitats, where they live in soft tubes attached among rock, rubble, sand, reef crevices or sheltered hard surfaces. They extend their feathery crown into the water column to capture fine suspended plankton and organic particles.

Water Parameters:
Temperature: 24–27°C
pH Range: 8.1–8.4
Hardness or Salinity: Marine salinity 1.023–1.026 specific gravity; stable reef-quality water with appropriate alkalinity, calcium and magnesium levels is recommended.

Temperament:
Peaceful and non-aggressive. Feather Dusters will not harm fish, corals or other invertebrates, but they can be damaged by fish or inverts that nip, pick, dig or disturb their tube and crown.

Diet:
Filter-feeder. Feed fine marine plankton foods such as phytoplankton, zooplankton blends, rotifers, fine powdered coral foods and other suspended micro-foods. It will also capture natural fine particles from a mature reef aquarium, but most specimens benefit from regular target feeding or broadcast feeding. Avoid blasting food directly into the crown, as this can make the worm retract.

Minimum Tank Size:
A minimum of 50 litres is recommended for a single specimen, provided the aquarium is mature and stable. Larger reef aquariums are generally easier because they provide more stable water quality and more natural suspended food.

Behaviour & Activity:
A sessile tube-dwelling worm that spends most of its time fixed in place with its crown extended into the current. It will quickly retract into its tube if touched, startled or shaded by passing fish. If stressed, it may shed its crown, which can regrow if the worm is otherwise healthy and water quality is stable, but repeated crown loss is a warning sign.

Reef Safe:
Reef Safe
Safe with corals and most peaceful reef fish. Use caution with butterflyfish, some wrasses, angelfish, puffers, triggers, predatory shrimp, crabs and other animals that may pick at the crown or damage the tube.

Special Requirements or Care Notes:
Place in a mature aquarium with gentle to moderate indirect flow so fine foods can pass across the crown without battering it. Position the tube securely in rockwork or sand and avoid moving it repeatedly once settled. Do not keep in brand-new, sterile or ultra-low-nutrient aquariums without a feeding plan. Stable salinity is very important, so acclimate carefully and avoid sudden parameter swings. Never pull the worm from its tube, as this can be fatal.

Suitable for:
Intermediate marine fishkeepers

Availability:
Common to occasional in trade / Marine invertebrate import

All images are a visual representation of the animal you will receive, made to be as accurate as possible. Please note that Mother Nature is a wonderful thing, and variation in patterns and colours will occur — that is part of the unique beauty of these animals.