fan worms

[leon]

How do fan worms reproduce?, when i got my live rock, i had a nice amount on most of them, with nearly all being a brownish colour, but now, theres loads of them, some ok sized ones, some taht are new and tiny, hundreds of them, alot are white with a metalic green in the fan, theyre even growing on the glass in the sump, one of my hermits, johnny 5 (cause he looks like the robot in the film! ) - missus named him!) has dozens n dozens of tiny ones all over his shell, even 2 duster clusters have appeared on 1 small rock.
I know this is a good thig, but i was wondering how theyve come to this amount, its getting more, every day i notice a new lot somewhere!
leon.

 

[Opcn]

Of course they reproduce, and I think its great that they have for you, they shouldnt overrun you unless the tank is overfed and they help reduce the nutrients in the water, if they set up shop on your glass Just take them off.

Pictures would be great

 

[leon]

i know they do , was just wondering how?

 

[Opcn]

Well when a mommy fan worm and a daddy fan worm deside that they love each other very much and the daddy fan worm has accrued enought capitol throught his fixed rate anuities sperm and eggs are released into the water column, not in the biannual sporgy fassion that corrals use but mre willy nilly, Now being fairly sessile invertibrates I believe that each fanworm has both parts and can colonise and infinity territory through asexual reproduction but I'm not a fan worm expert.

 

[Ed4567]

S. spallanzanii has separate female and male forms, which spawn at the same time. Gametes are broadcast into the water column, and it is thought that fertilisation is external. Females can shed more than 50,000 eggs if they are more than 300mm in length. In Australia, spawning occurs during the winter months, coinciding with falling water temperatures. Sexual maturity of Australian worms is obtained at 50mm. In Italy, it is not until the worms are 150mm long that they are sexually mature. The growth rate of S. spallanzanii is approximately 15mm per month during summer in Port Phillip Bay, Australia.

http/www.marine.csiro.au/crimp/nimpis/sp...ry.asp?txa=6129

I guess it would be the same in your tank