What do parchment worms eat?
The Chaetopterus parchment tubeworm feeds by fanning water through its home tube with its wing-like legs (fan parapodia). A bag of slime is excreted from two feeding legs (aliform notopodia). Water flows into this bag and out through its side, trapping tiny algal and mud particles.
Why is it called parchment worm?
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.
Where do parchment worms live?
parchment worm, (genus Chaetopterus), any of several species of segmented worms of the class Polychaeta (phylum Annelida), especially C. variopedatus of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. They live on the sea bottom in U-shaped tubes that are lined with parchmentlike material.
What does a Tubeworm look like?
Perhaps the most noticeable characteristic of these worms is their bright red plume. This is a specialized organ used for exchanging compounds such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen sulphide with the seawater. The bright red color comes from the presence of large amounts of hemoglobin (blood).
What is paddle worm?
paddle worm in British English noun. any of a family of green-blue faintly iridescent active marine polychaete worms of the genus Phyllodoce, having paddle-shaped swimming lobes, found under stones on the shore. Collins English Dictionary.
What is the scientific name of paddle worm?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Chaetopterus variopedatus.
What are the white tubes on the beach?
These tubes are the self-created homes of a parchment worm (Chaetopterus). Parchment worms tunnel into the sand using spines along their body and encase themselves in sediment, building a u-shaped tube, to live inside.
Where do vent worms live?
hydrothermal vents
They live among or even under clumps of mussels. They eat crabs, clams, and mussels. Tubeworms live around hydrothermal vents along the Mid-Ocean Ridge in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. They can grow up to two meters long and ten centimeters in diameter.
Do tube worms have blood?
Like human blood, tube worm blood contains hemoglobin, a protein that carries oxygen. It is the hemoglobin that turns the blood red. The cavity, or trophosome, is packed with bacteria. The bacteria manufacture sugars through chemosynthesis.
How many hearts does a worm have?
FIVE
Heartbeats: Worms don’t have just one heart. They have FIVE! But their hearts and circulatory system aren’t as complicated as ours — maybe because their blood doesn’t have to go to so many body parts.