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Osedax is a genus of deep-sea siboglinid polychaetes, commonly called boneworms, zombie worms, or bone-eating worms. Osedax is Latin for "bone-eater". The name alludes to how the worms bore into the bones of whale carcasses to reach enclosed lipids, on which they rely for sustenance. They utilize specialized root tissues for bone-boring. It is possible that multiple species of Osedax reside in the same bone. Osedax worms are also known to feed on the collagen itself by making holes in the whale's skeletal structure. These holes can also serve as a form of protection from nearby predators.
The Myzostomida or Myzostomatida are an order of small marine worms, which are parasitic on echinoderms, mostly crinoids. These highly unusual and diverse annelids were first discovered by Friedrich Sigismund Leuckart in 1827.
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.
Polynoidae is a family of marine Polychaete worms known as "scale worms" due to the scale-like elytra on the dorsal surface. Almost 900 species are currently recognised belonging to 9 subfamilies and 167 genera. They are active hunters, but generally dwell in protected environments such as under stones. The group is widely distributed from shallow intertidal waters to hadal trenches. They are the most diverse group of polychaetes in terms of genus number and second most diverse in terms of species number which is almost 8% of all segmented worm species.
Terebellida make up an order of the Polychaeta class, commonly referred to as "bristle worms". Together with the Sabellida, the Spionida and some enigmatic families of unclear taxonomic relationship, they make up the subclass Canalipalpata, one of the three main clades of polychaetes. Like most polychaetes, almost all members of the Terebellida are marine organisms. Most are small, sessile detritivores which live in small tubes they build from mud or similar substrate, or burrow in the sand. Their central nervous system displays characteristic apomorphies.
Ampharetidae are a family of terebellid "bristle worm". As such, they belong to the order Canalipalpata, one of the three main clades of polychaetes. They appear to be most closely related to the peculiar alvinellids (Alvinellidae) which inhabit the deep sea, and somewhat less closely to the well-known trumpet worms (Pectinariidae). These three appear to form one of the main clades of terebellids.
Hesioninae are a subfamily of phyllodocid "bristle worms". They are marine organisms; most are found on the continental shelf.
Hesionidae are a family of phyllodocid "Bristle worms". They are marine organisms. Most are found on the continental shelf; Hesiocaeca methanicola is found on methane ice, where it feeds on bacterial biofilms.
Opheliidae is a family of small, annelid worms. Some of the genera, like Armandia, Ophelina and Polyophthalmus, have lost their circular muscles. The Opheliidae family of polychaete; marine annelid worms, play an essential role in marine ecosystems as “deposit feeders” that aid in the recycling of nutrients and sediment mixing in muddle and sandy habitats. Due to their distinctive adaptations that include streamlined bodies and specialized muscles they can burrow in various marine environments.
Acrocirridae is a family of polychaete worms. Acrocirrids are detritivores, catching falling particles with numerous long prostomial tentacles. There are eight known genera, and at least 21 described species and subspecies within the Acrocirridae. The acrocirrids are primarily benthic (seabed-dwelling) animals, but at least two genera appear to have evolved or adapted to a pelagic (free-swimming) habitat.
Amphinomidae, also known as the fireworms, bristle worms or sea mice, are a family of marine polychaetes, many species of which bear chaetae mineralized with carbonate. The best-known amphinomids are the fireworms, which can cause great pain if their toxin-coated chaetae are touched or trodden on. Their relationship to other polychaete groups is somewhat poorly resolved.
Chrysopetalidae is a family of polychaete worms. The body is short or elongated, with few or numerous segments. All segments bear on their dorsal side a fan or a transverse row of paleae. The cephalic lobe has tentacles and eyes and the buccal segment has two or four tentacular cirri on each side. The parapodia are uniramous or biramous, with dorsal cirri upon all segments. The ventral bristles are compound.
Eulagisca gigantea is a species of scale worm. This species is specifically found in the deep-sea in cold waters like the Antarctic Ocean. The scale worms are named for the elytra on their surface that look like scales.
Ophryotrocha is a genus of marine polychaete worms in the family Dorvilleidae.
Aberranta is a genus of polychaete thought to be related to the Nerillidae.
Amphinomida is an order of marine polychaetes. The order contains two families:
Leocratides is a genus of marine hesionid polychaete worms dwelling in hexactinellid sponges.
Eumida is a genus of polychaetes belonging to the family Phyllodocidae.
Amphicteinae is a subfamily of polychaete worms in the family Ampharetidae. It was originally established as a tribe, with eight genera, but was elevated to subfamily-level with a reduced number of genera in 2020. Two species, Hypaniola kowatewskii and Hypania invalida, are known to feed on blue-green algae.
Notophyllum foliosum is a species of annelid in the family Phyllodocidae. Roughly 12 millimeters long, the annelid is bristly and covered in scale-like cirri. The species is found in shallow areas of the seafloor of the Mediterranean, Scandinavia, and Madeira. It was originally described as Phyllodoce foliosa in 1835 and was moved to the genus Notophyllum in 1923. The species was split in two in 2010, with the deeper-dwelling Notophyllum crypticum being designated its own species.
References
- Pleijel, Fredrik; Rouse, Greg W.; Ruta, Christine; Wiklund, Helena & Nygren, Arne (2008): Vrijenhoekia balaenophila, a new hesionid polychaete from a whale fall off California. Zool. J. Linn. Soc. 152(4): 625–634. doi : 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2007.00360.x (HTML abstract)
- World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) (2008): Psamathini. Version of 2008-MAR-26. Retrieved 2009-FEB-23.
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