Phyllochaetopterus prolifica | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Annelida |
Clade: | Pleistoannelida |
Subclass: | Sedentaria |
Order: | Spionida |
Family: | Chaetopteridae |
Genus: | Phyllochaetopterus |
Species: | P. prolifica |
Binomial name | |
Phyllochaetopterus prolifica Potts, 1914 [1] | |
Synonyms [1] | |
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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.
Worms in the family Chaetopteridae have soft bodies and occupy permanent chitinous or parchment-like tubes that they create. P. prolifica is a colonial species which forms dense collections of tubes, many of which are branched. [2] Clusters of these tubes may be 30 cm (12 in) high. [3] At the anterior end of the worm is the prostomium which bears a pair of eyes and a pair of long palps but no antennae. The peristomium (area surrounding the mouth) has a pair of short tentacles. Below this, the segmented body is divided into three regions which differ in the arrangement of the parapodia (lateral lobes). On the first segment of the anterior region of the body is a pair of tentacular cirri and a pair of palps. The middle region consists of four to twelve segments and the posterior region consists of many short segments. [4]
Phyllochaetopterus prolifica is native to the eastern Pacific Ocean. Its range extends from British Columbia to Baja California and from Ecuador to southern Chile. It is found in the subtidal zone with a depth range of 0 to 24 m (0 to 80 ft), typically on rocks, but also on pilings and floating docks. [3]
Phyllochaetopterus prolifica is an opportunistic feeder, being a deposit feeder or a suspension feeder depending on circumstances. [5] It can reproduce asexually by dividing to form new individuals, or can breed sexually by shedding sperm and eggs into the sea. [3]
The dense colonies of branching tubes of this worm provide a habitat with an abundance of food and low risk of predation for the juveniles of some species of starfish. Researchers in Washington state found that the larvae of the vermillion sea star (Mediaster aequalis) preferentially settled on the tubes. [6] They also found juveniles of the sand star (Luidia foliolata), the common sunstar (Crossaster papposus), the Pacific blood star (Henricia leviuscula), the sun star (Solaster stimpsoni), the morning sun star (Solaster dawsoni), and the slime star (Pteraster tesselatus) on the worm tubes but not in the surrounding environment. [7]
Mediaster aequalis is a species of sea star in the family Goniasteridae. It is native to the west coast of North America, ranging from Alaska to California. It is found in various habitats including beaches during very low tides, and at depths down to about 500 m (1,600 ft). Also known as the vermilion sea star, it is the type species of the genus Mediaster and was first described in 1857 by the American zoologist William Stimpson.
The Chaetopteridae are a family of marine filter-feeding polychaete worms that live in vertical or U-shaped tubes in tunnels buried in the sedimentary or hard substrate of marine environments. The worms are highly adapted to the hard tube they secrete. Inside the tube the animal is segmented and regionally specialized, with highly modified appendages on different segments for cutting the tunnel, feeding, or creating suction for the flow of water through the tube home. The modified segments for feeding are on the 12th segment from the head for members of this family.
Chaetopterus or the parchment worm or parchment tube worm is a genus of marine polychaete worm that lives in a tube it constructs in sediments or attaches to a rocky or coral reef substrate. The common name arises from the parchment-like appearance of the tubes that house these worms. Parchment tube worms are filter feeders and spend their adult lives in their tubes, unless the tube is damaged or destroyed. They are planktonic in their juvenile forms, as is typical for polychaete annelids. Species include the recently discovered deep water Chaetopterus pugaporcinus and the well-studied Chaetopterus variopedatus.
Serpula is a genus of sessile, marine annelid tube worms that belongs to the family Serpulidae. Serpulid worms are very similar to tube worms of the closely related sabellid family, except that the former possess a cartilaginous operculum that occludes the entrance to their protective tube after the animal has withdrawn into it. The most distinctive feature of worms of the genus Serpula is their colorful fan-shaped "crown". The crown, used by these animals for respiration and alimentation, is the structure that is most commonly seen by scuba divers and other casual observers.
Chaetopterus variopedatus is a species of parchment worm, a marine polychaete in the family Chaetopteridae. It is found worldwide. However, recent discoveries from molecular phylogeny analysis show that Chaetopterus variopedatus sensu Hartman (1959) is not a single species.
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.
Lagis koreni, commonly known as the trumpet worm, is a species of marine polychaete worm found in European waters. It lives within a narrow conical tube made of grains of sand and shell fragments.
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.
Palpata is a subclass of polychaete worm. Members of this subclass are mostly deposit feeders on marine detritus or filter feeders. Palpata has become superfluous with the elevation of Canalipalpata to subclass.
Serpula vermicularis, known by common names including the calcareous tubeworm, fan worm, plume worm or red tube worm, is a species of segmented marine polychaete worm in the family Serpulidae. It is the type species of the genus Serpula and was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1767 12th edition of Systema Naturae. It lives in a tube into which it can retract.
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.
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.
Phyllochaetopterus is a genus of marine polychaete worms that live in tubes that they construct.
Patiria chilensis is a species of starfish in the family Asterinidae. It is found in the southeastern Pacific Ocean along the coasts of South America. It is a broadly pentagonal, cushion-like starfish with five short arms.
Leucia is a genus of marine polychaete worms belonging to the family Polynoidae, the scaleworms. Leucia contains 2 species, both found in the northern Atlantic Ocean. This genus is distinguished from the closely related genus Harmothoe by having sixteen pairs of elytra, as opposed to fifteen.
Thyone fusus is a species of sea cucumber in the family Phyllophoridae. It is found on the seabed in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. It is a suspension feeder and catches food particles floating past with its branching feeding tentacles.
Dipolydora commensalis is a species of polychaete worm in the family Spionidae. It has a commensal relationship with a hermit crab and occurs on the lower shore of coasts on the western side of the Atlantic Ocean.
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.
Serpula columbiana, variously called the calcareous tubeworm, plume worm, fan worm, limy tube worm and red tube worm, is a species of segmented marine polychaete worm in the family Serpulidae. It is a cosmopolitan species that is found in most seas in the Northern Hemisphere including the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean.
Paraleptopentacta elongata is a species of sea cucumber in the family Cucumariidae. It is found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and parts of the Mediterranean Sea. It is an infaunal species, occupying a burrow in the seabed, from which its anterior and posterior ends project.