Worm Christmas tree. Tubular polychaete sea worm or Christmas tree worm

Soon New Year, so this note will be dedicated to one animal, which I completely and completely associate with this holiday. What you see in front of you is not just another beautiful underwater plant in the form of a Christmas tree, but a real animal - a tubular polychaete sea worm family Sabellidae.

"New Year trees" are common in tropical zone Indian and western parts Pacific Oceans. You can find them at shallow depths among corals, in crystal clear water, poor nutrients.

They live in a limestone tube. At the same time, the main building materials are calcium ions and carbonate ions, which the worm extracts from the water.

Their connecting link is an organic component secreted from two glands located in the mouth. During growth, new parts of the tube are added by small rings that are placed at the end of the old tube.

But before starting to build its shelter, the worm larva carefully selects corals for its house. Only weakened or dead polyps are suitable for her, because it is more convenient to build tube houses on them.

There are entire colonies of these worms

Over time, the corals grow around the tube, becoming less noticeable, and only “herringbones” remain on the surface.

What looks so much like a fir tree are gill rays that diverge into 2 separate spirals. They are simultaneously respiratory and nutritional organs ( catches small particles from the water organic matter ).

By the way, numerous colonies of worms of the same color are very rare

Their color can be very diverse: bright blue, red and yellow, with shades from white to pink-blue and even black, etc. It may be that the gill rays of one worm have different color scheme.

One more characteristic feature These worms are identified by the presence of a cap on the tube that tightly closes the entrance to the tube. At the slightest danger, the worm instantly retracts its spiral-shaped gill rays inside the tube, thereby closing with a lid.

Spirobranchus giganteus lives differently, it all depends on the species: smaller worms live for several months, and larger species live up to 4-8 years.

New Year is coming soon, so this article will be dedicated to one animal that I completely associate with this holiday. What you see in front of you is not just another beautiful underwater plant in the form of a Christmas tree, but a real animal – a tubular polychaete marine worm of the Sabellidae family.

Tubular polychaete sea worm or Christmas tree worm (lat. Spirobranchus giganteus) (English: Christmas tree worm)

“New Year trees” are common in the tropical zone of the Indian and western Pacific oceans. They can be found at shallow depths among corals, in crystal clear water, poor in nutrients.

They live in a limestone tube. At the same time, the main building materials are calcium ions and carbonate ions, which the worm extracts from the water.

Their connecting link is an organic component secreted from two glands located in the mouth. During growth, new parts of the tube are added by small rings that are placed at the end of the old tube.

There are entire colonies of these worms

Over time, the corals grow around the tube, becoming less noticeable, and only “herringbones” remain on the surface.

What looks so much like a fir tree are gill rays that diverge into 2 separate spirals. They are simultaneously respiratory and nutritional organs ( pick up small particles of organic matter from the water).

By the way, numerous colonies of worms of the same color are very rare

Their color can be very diverse: bright blue, red and yellow, with shades from white to pink-blue and even black, etc. It may be that the gill rays of one worm have a different color scheme.

Another characteristic feature of these worms is the presence of a cap on the tube that tightly closes the entrance to the tube. At the slightest danger, the worm instantly retracts its spiral-shaped gill rays inside the tube, thereby closing with a lid.

Spirobranchus giganteus lives differently, it all depends on the species: smaller worms last for several months, and larger species last up to 4-8 years.

Tubular polychaete sea worm or Christmas tree worm (lat. Spirobranchus giganteus) (English) Christmas tree worm)

You can find it at shallow depths among corals, in crystal clear water, which is poor in nutrients. The worms are common in the tropical Indian and western Pacific oceans.

This is a small worm that lives in a calcareous tube. Its main building materials are calcium ions and carbonate ions, which the worm extracts from the water. Their connecting link is an organic component secreted from two glands located in the mouth. During growth, new parts of the tube are added by small rings that are placed at the end of the old tube.

There are entire colonies of these worms.

Over time, the corals grow around the tube, so they become invisible, and only “herringbones” remain on the surface.

What looks so much like a fir tree are gill rays that diverge into 2 separate spirals. They are both respiratory and nutritional organs (they pick up small particles of organic substances from the water).

Their color can be very diverse: bright blue, red and yellow, with shades from white to pink-blue and even black, etc. It may be that the gill rays of one worm have a different color scheme.

Another characteristic feature of these worms is the presence of a cap on the tube, which tightly buries the entrance to the tube. At the slightest danger, the worm instantly retracts its spiral-shaped gill rays inside the tube, and the lid slams on top.

live Spirobranchus giganteus in different ways, it all depends on the species: smaller worms last for several months, and larger species last up to 4-8 years.

New Year is coming soon, so it will be interesting to meet a living Christmas tree, living on the bottom of the oceans, is a tubular polychaete marine worm of the family Sabellidae.

"New Year trees" are common in the tropical zone of the Indian and western Pacific oceans. They can be found at shallow depths among corals, in crystal clear water, poor in nutrients.

They live in a limestone tube. At the same time, the main building materials are calcium ions and carbonate ions, which the worm extracts from the water.
Their connecting link is an organic component secreted from two glands located in the mouth. During growth, new parts of the tube are added by small rings that are placed at the end of the old tube.

Over time, the corals grow around the tube, becoming less noticeable, and only “herringbones” remain on the surface.

Their color can be very diverse: bright blue, red and yellow, with shades from white to pink-blue and even black, etc. It may be that the gill rays of one worm have a different color scheme.

There are entire colonies of these worms

By the way, numerous colonies of worms of the same color are very rare

Worm "Christmas tree" January 5th, 2016

What you see in front of you is not just another beautiful underwater plant in the form of a Christmas tree, but a real animal - a tubular polychaete sea worm of the Sabellidae family, but they are better known by their colloquial name - Worm Christmas tree. Of course, these are the same, and something more pleasant. "New Year trees" are common in the tropical zone of the Indian and western Pacific oceans. They can be found at shallow depths among corals, in crystal clear water, poor in nutrients.

Let's learn more...

Photo 2.

Spirobranchus giganteus live in the ocean and have magnificent spirals of feathers protruding from a tube-like body. These feathers look amazingly like tiny Christmas trees. These feathers are made up of hair-like appendages, radiolae, that emanate from the worm's central spine and help the animal capture food. They feed mainly on microscopic plants and phytoplankton floating in the water. Feathers are also used for breathing. Reaching no more than 4 centimeters in height, the worms come in numerous colors, including orange, yellow, blue and white. They can be easily identified due to their shape, beauty and vibrant color.

Photo 3.

The Christmas Tree worm really doesn't like to move. Once they find good place on living calcareous coral, they dig a hole and spend most of their lives there, sometimes emerging from home with their feathers fully extended to catch fleeting plankton. They are very sensitive to all kinds of threats and quickly hide in holes at the slightest touch or fleeting shadow.

Photo 4.

They live in a limestone tube. At the same time, the main building materials are calcium ions and carbonate ions, which the worm extracts from the water.

Their connecting link is an organic component secreted from two glands located in the mouth. During growth, new parts of the tube are added by small rings that are placed at the end of the old tube.

Photo 5.

Over time, the corals grow around the tube, becoming less noticeable, and only “herringbones” remain on the surface.

Photo 6.

Their color can be very diverse: bright blue, red and yellow, with shades from white to pink-blue and even black, etc. It may be that the gill rays of one worm have a different color scheme.

Photo 7.