Zoanthid parasite?

[thesilence87]

I have something growing on a colony of red zoas that has a growth on it. It looks like the fruiting body of a fungus, and has a some serious strength to it's fibers. I was carefully pulling it off the two polyps it was growing on, and I could feel the snapping sensation as the fruiting bodies broke.

I've been trying to google what it is, but haven't had any luck. I don't have an image because I've removed almost all of the growth manually already. Have any of you ever experienced anything like this?

 

[dawgface]

Pictures would help.

You sure it's not a Nudibranch?

 

[mr difficult]

Probably a sponge of some sort would be my guess without a pic. I would say it wont hurt anything.

 

[thesilence87]

I'm 100% certain it wasn't a nudibranch. It was very slender stringy growths that end in little reddish brown bulbs. It can't have been more than 1/2mm thick at the thickest point, but there were maybe a total of 12 of them, growing in a group between two polyps.

 

[irahmatulla]

Were they tube like? Vermitid snails? Do they have almost a webbing coming out sweeping across the zoos? At other times two small fibers coming form the tip? Color maybe? You say fruit, and someone said sponge? Maybe a pineapple sponge? Is it a growth that coincidentally is on the zoas? Or is it strictly allocated?

 

[thesilence87]

IRahmatulla;697204 wrote: Were they tube like? Vermitid snails? Do they have almost a webbing coming out sweeping across the zoos? At other times two small fibers coming form the tip? Color maybe? You say fruit, and someone said sponge? Maybe a pineapple sponge? Is it a growth that coincidentally is on the zoas? Or is it strictly allocated?

They're far too skinny to be vermetid snails. The closest thing to them I've come across in pictures to them are hydroids. They look like hydroids but with the polyps closed, which is what I'm guessing they are as of now.
The growth is starting from the frag plug and working it's way up onto the actual zoa polyp itself on one of the polyps.

 

[irahmatulla]

All the vermetids I have ever had were very very thin. I have punctured quite a few fingertips on them. They look just like hydroids, but IME hydroids tubes looked like little bits of sand that were stuck together, where as the vermitid's tubes were smooth. Also, they will both put out the two feelers, just watch for the webbing. Either way try and break them off, and super glue the tube shut. Today it is a frag plug, tomorrow.....the ecosystem as you know it.

 

[jennm]

Sounds like Sargassum based on the description, or at least my interpretation of it.

Jenn