| Loimia medusa | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Annelida |
| Clade: | Pleistoannelida |
| Clade: | Sedentaria |
| Order: | Terebellida |
| Family: | Terebellidae |
| Genus: | Loimia |
| Species: | L. medusa |
| Binomial name | |
| Loimia medusa (Savigny, 1822) | |
Loimia medusa, commonly known as the spaghetti worm or medusa worm, [1] is an aquatic species of annelid belonging to the family Terebellidae. [2]
Loimia medusa has long bluish white feeding tentacles that give the appearance of spaghetti noodles under any kind of rubble or rocks. [3] Under those rocks, it has a body that is surrounded by a tube consisting of bits of shell and gravel, [4] creating a tube that has a tough membranous lining with segments. The body can grow to be about 12 in (300 mm) long, while the tentacles can grow to twice that length. [5]
Loimia medusa prefers tropical oceans, such as the Indo-Pacific and the Western Central Atlantic, [6] including reefs off of the Hawaiian Islands. [7]
Its habitat includes spaces such as tidepools, brackish waters, and bays that consist of rubble. [6] They can also be found in sand and coral reefs in the deeper waters across the Hawaiian islands. [8]
In Hawai'i, Loimia medusa is known as the Kauna'oa. During the Old Hawai'i times, this invertebrate was used for medicinal purposes. [4]
Cnidaria is a phylum under kingdom Animalia containing over 11,000 species of aquatic animals found both in fresh water and marine environments, including jellyfish, hydroids, sea anemones, corals and some of the smallest marine parasites. Their distinguishing features are a decentralized nervous system distributed throughout a gelatinous body and the presence of cnidocytes or cnidoblasts, specialized cells with ejectable flagella used mainly for envenomation and capturing prey. Their bodies consist of mesoglea, a non-living, jelly-like substance, sandwiched between two layers of epithelium that are mostly one cell thick. Cnidarians are also some of the only animals that can reproduce both sexually and asexually.
Anthozoa is a subphylum of marine invertebrates which includes sessile cnidarians such as the sea anemones, stony corals, soft corals and sea pens. Adult anthozoans are almost all attached to the seabed, while their larvae can disperse as planktons. The basic unit of the adult is the polyp; this consists of a cylindrical column topped by a disc with a central mouth surrounded by tentacles. Sea anemones are mostly solitary, but the majority of corals are colonial, being formed by the budding of new polyps from an original, founding individual. Colonies are strengthened by calcium carbonate and other materials and take various massive, plate-like, bushy or leafy forms.
Hanauma is a marine embayment formed within a tuff ring and located along the southeast coast of the Island of Oʻahu in the Hawaii Kai neighborhood of East Honolulu, in the Hawaiian Islands.
Antipatharians, also known as black corals or thorn corals, are an order of soft deep-water corals. These corals can be recognized by their jet-black or dark brown chitin skeletons, which are surrounded by their colored polyps. Antipatharians are a cosmopolitan order, existing in nearly every oceanic location and depth, with the sole exception of brackish waters. However, they are most frequently found on continental slopes under 50 m (164 ft) deep. A black coral reproduces both sexually and asexually throughout its lifetime. Many black corals provide housing, shelter, food, and protection for other animals.
The Polycladida represents a highly diverse clade of free-living marine flatworms. They are known from the littoral to the sublittoral zone, and many species are common from coral reefs. Only a few species are found in freshwater habitats.
Fire corals (Millepora) are a genus of colonial marine organisms that exhibit physical characteristics similar to that of coral. The name coral is somewhat misleading, as fire corals are not true corals but are instead more closely related to Hydra and other hydrozoans, making them hydrocorals. They make up the only genus in the monotypic family Milleporidae.
Bispira brunnea, the social feather duster or cluster duster, is a species of marine bristleworm. They tend to live in groups of individuals, and are common off the Caribbean islands in southeast North America. The feather duster has one crown of various colors, however, the color of the crown seems to be consistent within individual colonies.
Porites astreoides, commonly known as mustard hill coral or yellow porites, is a colonial species of stony coral in the family Poritidae.
Coastal fish, also called inshore fish or neritic fish, inhabit the sea between the shoreline and the edge of the continental shelf. Since the continental shelf is usually less than 200 metres (660 ft) deep, it follows that pelagic coastal fish are generally epipelagic fish, inhabiting the sunlit epipelagic zone. Coastal fish can be contrasted with oceanic fish or offshore fish, which inhabit the deep seas beyond the continental shelves.
Cellana talcosa, the talc limpet or turtle limpet is a species of true limpet, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Nacellidae, which is one of the true limpet families. This species is endemic to the Hawaiian islands, where its common name is koele or opihi ko'ele. It is the largest limpet found in the Hawaiian islands and can reach 4 in (100 mm) in diameter.
Sabellastarte spectabilis is a species of benthic marine polychaete worm in the Sabellidae family. It is commonly known as the feather duster worm, feather duster or fan worm. It is native to tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific but has spread to other parts of the world. It is popular in aquariums because of its distinctive appearance and its ability to remove organic particles and improve water quality.
Sabellariidae is a family of marine polychaete worms in the suborder Sabellida. The worms live in tubes made of sand and are filter feeders and detritivores.
Millepora alcicornis, or sea ginger, is a species of colonial fire coral with a calcareous skeleton. It is found on shallow water coral reefs in the tropical west Atlantic Ocean. It shows a variety of different morphologies depending on its location. It feeds on plankton and derives part of its energy requirements from microalgae found within its tissues. It is an important member of the reef building community and subject to the same threats as other corals. It can cause painful stings to unwary divers.
Calotomus carolinus, commonly known as Carolines parrotfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a parrotfish, in the family Scaridae. It is also known as the starry-eye parrotfish, stareye parrotfish, bucktooth parrotfish, Christmas parrotfish or marbled parrotfish. Since the Calotomus carolinus is known across the Pacific, it also has its own name in many native languages for example, it is called a panuhunuhunu in the Hawaiian language.
Pennaria disticha, also known as the Christmas tree hydroid, is a species of athecate hydroid in the family Pennariidae. Colonies are common in the Mediterranean Sea growing on rocks close to the surface. This species has been used in research into prey capture.
Salmacina dysteri is a species of tube-forming annelid worm in the family Serpulidae. It is found on submerged rocks, reefs, piles and boats in many shallow and deeper water environments around the world.
Dendropoma gregarium is a worm snail common in intertidal and subtidal areas in Hawaiʻi and the tropical Pacific.
Dictyosphaeria versluysii is a species of green algae in the family Siphonocladaceae. This species is indigenous to Indonesia, with a world distribution ranging from the Pacific regions and extending to the Indian Ocean. It can be found in various countries including Mexico, China, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Australia, and Hawaii.
Spirobranchus corniculatus, commonly referred to as the Indo-Pacific Christmas tree worm, is a species of tube-building annelid fanworms in the family Serpulidae. Belonging to the class Polychaeta, it is recognized for its bristle-like tentacles and the presence of a structure called radioles. It is widely encountered and recognized for its unique resemblance to a conifer and its diverse array of colors. Initially presumed to be part of a species group including Spirobranchus cruciger and Spirobranchus gaymardi, it has been determined to be a singular, morphologically adaptable species inhabiting the Central Indo-Pacific region.
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