Feather duster worm (Sabellastarte spectabilis) care guide

Group
Other invertebrates
Other names
Feather duster, Fan worm, Giant feather duster, Sabellastarte indica, Sabellastarte sanctijosephi
Family
Sabellidae
Origin
Indian Ocean and Red Sea, tropical Indo-Pacific; introduced in Hawaii, East Africa and the Gulf of Mexico
Water
saltwater
Maximum size
18 cm
Temperature
22–26°C
pH
8.1–8.4
Hardness
SG 1.023–1.025, dKH 8–12
Minimum tank
100 litres
Care level
intermediate
Temperament
peaceful
Reef safe
yes
Flow
Medium

Care

The feather duster is a tube-dwelling bristle worm that lives in a tough, leathery tube coated in fine mud and sand, and spreads a crown of feathery, banded brown and pale tentacles (radioles) to feed and breathe. The body is up to about 8 cm long and buff with purple specks; the whole animal with tube and crown can reach about 18 cm. Hobby animals are often sold as Sabellastarte sp. It has also spread to harbours outside its native range. Feeding warning: it is a filter feeder. Cilia on the crown draw water through and catch tiny floating particles, which are passed to the mouth. Filter feeders are hard to keep fed and many starve slowly in clean reef tanks. Give it a mature tank with plenty of plankton and dose phytoplankton or fine foods several times a week. Set-up: place the base of the tube in rubble or a rock crevice near the bottom of the tank where it gets medium, indirect flow. Do not pull the tube from the rock. It snaps its crown back into the tube when disturbed. When badly stressed (often after transport) it may drop its crown; if left alone it can grow a new one in a few weeks. Copper: copper-based medicines and some plant fertilisers are toxic to shrimp, snails and most invertebrates. Never dose copper in a tank holding this animal, and check fertiliser and medicine labels before use. Sources: LiveAquaria (liveaquaria.com/products/feather-duster); Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabellastartespectabilis). Checked October 2026.

Diet

Filter feeder: phytoplankton, zooplankton and fine organic particles. Feed bottled phytoplankton, rotifers or fine liquid and powdered foods into the flow near the crown several times a week. It also benefits from fish feeding in a mature system.

Breeding

Most animals are male or female, though some large ones carry both sexes, consistent with changing sex as they grow. They release eggs and sperm into the water, and trochophore larvae spend a short time in the plankton before settling. It can also reproduce by splitting and regrowing parts, and small dusters sometimes appear in established tanks, but planned breeding is not practical.

Compatibility and tank mates

Peaceful and reef safe. Eaten or nipped by angelfish, butterflyfish, many wrasses, puffers, triggers, hawkfish and arrow crabs. Some shrimp and hermits may harass it. Keep away from corals that could sting it.

Last updated 8 October 2026. Community-edited care guide on Aquatic-Auctions.

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