Odontosyllis phosphorea

Odontosyllis phosphorea
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Annelida
Class:	Polychaeta
Order:	Errantia
Family:	Syllidae
Genus:	Odontosyllis
Species:	O. phosphorea
Binomial name
	Odontosyllis phosphorea; Moore, 1909 [1]
Synonyms [1]
	Hesperalia californiensis Chamberlin, 1919; O. p. nanaimoensis Berkeley, 1923;

Last updated November 22, 2020

Odontosyllis phosphorea, commonly known as a fireworm, is a polychaete worm that inhabits the Pacific coast of North and Central America. The organism normally lives in a tube on the seabed, but it becomes bioluminescent when it rises to the surface of the sea during breeding season.

Description

Odontosyllis phosphorea is a small worm some 20 to 30 mm (0.8 to 1.2 in) long and 1 mm (0.04 in) in diameter when fully grown.^[2] Its elongated body is composed of many segments, each bearing a pair of parapodia. With these appendages it can crawl, burrow and swim, but it normally lives in a parchment-like tube it creates on a rock or other hard surface on the seabed.^[3] The head has two pairs of eyes, a nuchal hood which covers the back of the prostomium, and a ring of small curved teeth inside the pharynx. The parapodia in the central part of the body are slender and tapering. The upper surface of the worm is dark with yellowish transverse bands.^[4]

Distribution and habitat

This fireworm occurs on the west coast of North America from British Columbia to California, with a separate population off the coast of Panama in Central America.^[3] The species typically lives among seaweed growing on rocks and among seagrasses such as Zostera . It can be found on the seabed from the intertidal zone down to the continental shelf.^[4]

Ecology

Odontosyllis phosphorea feeds mainly on bacteria, microalgae and planktonic particles. It swallows this prey whole by everting its pharynx around the food item. It is itself eaten by fish, crabs and birds, being particularly vulnerable during its reproductive phase when it rises to the surface. One means of defence that it exhibits at these times is that it can shed its bioluminescent tail which may serve as a decoy while the worm returns to the seabed.^[3]

Reproduction is seasonal in O. phosphorea, its timing related to the phases of the moon. Spawning takes place between June and October, at night at two-weekly intervals coinciding with neap tides. Shortly after sunset, worms begin to rise to the surface. Males usually appear first, the hind part of their body emitting a blue-green light, and periodically discharging a lingering secretion of luminous matter into the water. Females appear soon afterwards, emitting flashes of light, and swimming in small circles on the water's surface. Both the body of the female and the secretions it produces are luminous and sometimes a male gyrates on the surface with a female. The display ceases within half an hour of starting. Water samples taken in the vicinity of males and females and their luminous secretions contain spermatozoa and eggs respectively.^[2]

This breeding activity contrasts with the closely related Bermuda fireworm (Odontosyllis enopla) which is largely non-seasonal in its breeding behaviour but very specific in its lunar periodicity and timing, rising to the surface to spawn 55 minutes after sunset, on a night just after the full moon.^[5]

Related Research Articles

The Polychaeta, also known as the bristle worms or polychaetes, are a paraphyletic class of annelid worms, generally marine. Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are made of chitin. More than 10,000 species are described in this class. Common representatives include the lugworm and the sandworm or clam worm Alitta.

Eunicidae is a family of marine polychaetes. The family comprises marine annelids distributed in diverse benthic habitats across Oceania, Europe, South America, North America, Asia and Africa. The Eunicid anatomy typically consists of a pair of appendages near the mouth (mandibles) and complex sets of muscular structures on the head (maxillae) in an eversible pharynx. One of the most conspicuous of the eunicids is the giant, dark-purple, iridescent "Bobbit worm", a bristle worm found at low tide under boulders on southern Australian shores. Its robust, muscular body can be as long as 2 m. Eunicidae jaws are known from as far back as Ordovician sediments. Cultural tradition surrounds Palola worm reproductive cycles in the South Pacific Islands. Eunicidae are economically valuable as bait in both recreational and commercial fishing. Commercial bait-farming of Eunicidae can have adverse ecological impacts. Bait-farming can deplete worm and associated fauna population numbers, damage local intertidal environments and introduce alien species to local aquatic ecosystems.

Odontosyllis enopla, commonly known as the Bermuda fireworm, is a polychaete worm that inhabits shallow areas of the western Atlantic Ocean. The organism is bioluminescent when it rises to the surface of the sea during its mating period. It is possible that this fireworm is the explanation of a candle-like light seen by Christopher Columbus during his first voyage on 11 October 1492 before he made landfall in his explorations.

Eunicida is an order of polychaete worms.

Lanice conchilega, commonly known as the sand mason worm, is a species of burrowing marine polychaete worm. It builds a characteristic tube which projects from the seabed, consisting of cemented sand grains and shell fragments with a fringe at the top.

Abarenicola pacifica or the Pacific lugworm is a large species of polychaete worm found on the west coast of North America and also in Japan. The worms live out of sight in burrows under the sand and produce casts which are visible on the surface.

Spionida is an order of marine polychaete worms in the infraclass Canalipalpata. Spionids are cosmopolitan and live in soft substrates in the littoral or neritic zones.

Haplosyllis spongicola, the sponge worm, is a species of polychaete worm in the family Syllidae. It was previously classified as Syllis spongicola and is part of a species complex of closely related species that are difficult to distinguish morphologically and where the demarcation between them is unclear. It is found in shallow temperate, subtropical and tropical seas worldwide, wherever its host sponges are found.

Hediste diversicolor, commonly known as a ragworm, is a polychaete worm in the family Nereidae. It lives in a burrow in the sand or mud of beaches and estuaries in intertidal zones in the north Atlantic. This species is used in research but its classification is in dispute and in the literature it is often classified as Nereis diversicolor. Its specific name "diversicolor" refers to the fact that its colour changes from brown to green as the breeding season approaches.

Phyllodoce mucosa is a species of polychaete worm in the family Phyllodocidae. It is found intertidally in both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, typically on sandy or muddy seabeds.

Phyllodocidae is a family of polychaete worms. Worms in this family live on the seabed and may burrow under the sediment.

Scolelepis squamata is a species of polychaete worm in the family Spionidae. It occurs on the lower shore of coasts on either side of the Atlantic Ocean.

Tubulanus superbus, commonly known as the football jersey worm, is a species of ribbon worm in the phylum Nemertea. Found in the northern Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, it occurs from the lower shore down to about 80 m (260 ft), on sand or gravel.

Phyllochaetopterus prolifica is a species of marine polychaete worms that live in a tube that it constructs. It is native to shallow waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean and forms colonies of tubes on rocks and submerged objects.

Syllis prolifera is a species of polychaete worm in the family Syllidae. It has a cosmopolitan distribution. It was first described in 1852 by the Russian/German zoologist August David Krohn who gave it the name Syllis prolifera.

The Atlantic batfish is a species of fish in the family Ogcocephalidae. It is found in deep water in the Atlantic Ocean where it lives on the seabed, feeding on small invertebrates.

Lepidonotus squamatus is a species of polychaete worm, commonly known as a "scale worm", in the family Polynoidae. This species occurs in both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. It was first described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 as Aphrodita squamata but was later transferred to the genus Lepidonotus.

Neanthes fucata is a species of marine polychaete worm in the family Nereididae. It lives in association with a hermit crab such as Pagurus bernhardus. It occurs in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.

Urechis caupo is a species of spoon worm in the family Urechidae, commonly known as the innkeeper echiuran, the fat innkeeper worm, the innkeeper worm, or the penis fish. It is found in shallow water on the west coast of North America, between southern Oregon and Baja California, where it forms a U-shaped burrow in the sediment and feeds on plankton using a mucus net.

Sternaspidae, commonly known as mud owls, are a family of marine polychaete worms with short swollen bodies. They have a global distribution and live buried in soft sediment at depths varying from the intertidal zone to 4,400 m (14,400 ft).

References

1 2 WoRMS (2015). "Odontosyllis phosphorea Moore, 1909". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 1 January 2015.
1 2 Tsuji, Frederick I.; Hill, Elizabeth (1983). "Repetitive cycles of bioluminescence and spawning in the polychaete Odontosyllis phosphorea". Biological Bulletin. 165 (2): 444–449. doi:10.2307/1541210.
1 2 3 Metzler, Isaac; Groh, James. "Odontosyllis phosphorea". The benthic glow. University of Wisconsin. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
1 2 Light, Sol Felty; Carlton, James T. (2007). The Light and Smith Manual: Intertidal Invertebrates from Central California to Oregon. University of California Press. pp. 346–350. ISBN 978-0-520-23939-5.
↑ Dorresteijn, Adriaan W.C.; Westheide. Wilfried (2013). Reproductive Strategies and Developmental Patterns in Annelids. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 48. ISBN 978-94-017-2887-4.

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[WoRMS-1] 1 2 WoRMS (2015). "Odontosyllis phosphorea Moore, 1909". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 1 January 2015.

[Tsuji-2] 1 2 Tsuji, Frederick I.; Hill, Elizabeth (1983). "Repetitive cycles of bioluminescence and spawning in the polychaete Odontosyllis phosphorea". Biological Bulletin. 165 (2): 444–449. doi:10.2307/1541210.

[Wisconsin-3] 1 2 3 Metzler, Isaac; Groh, James. "Odontosyllis phosphorea". The benthic glow. University of Wisconsin. Retrieved 1 January 2016.

[Light-4] 1 2 Light, Sol Felty; Carlton, James T. (2007). The Light and Smith Manual: Intertidal Invertebrates from Central California to Oregon. University of California Press. pp. 346–350. ISBN 978-0-520-23939-5.

[Dorresteijn-5] Dorresteijn, Adriaan W.C.; Westheide. Wilfried (2013). Reproductive Strategies and Developmental Patterns in Annelids. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 48. ISBN 978-94-017-2887-4.