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 ABOUTfeatured: 30 Best Snorkeling Blogs Fun Ways to enjoy the caribbeanOLDER POST:Christmas Tree Worms, Spirobranchus giganteusNEWER POST:Common Octopus, Caribbean Octopus, CuracaoJul 3, 10 Comments Off
Hi gang, I found another fun face out on our Sea Aquarium House Reef the other day and have been waiting to send it out. Yes, we all know by now what a vivid and wild imagination I have! When I am out on the reef I search for everything and believe it or not these natural faces are very hard to find! Usually when I find these Split-Crown Feather Dusters I have to ever so carefully and quietly sneak up on them because any sudden movement from you or your dive buddy will cause them to retract their crowns and disappear into their tubes! The featherduster worm lives in a tube that it makes from a combination of fine sand particles and mucus. It may have a calcareous (composed of or containing calcium carbonate) tube which it secretes. The worm’s body is made up of muscle, separated from the internal organs by a layer of fluid. The common name “featherduster” comes from the crown of tentacles attached in two groups, one on each side of its head. Internal skeletal rods support the tentacles. The featherduster worm uses its tentacles to breathe and to capture its food. The tentacles have fine cilia (tiny hairs) on them, and are grooved so that the particles are guided to the base of the tentacle. Featherduster worms found in deeper water tend to be larger than those found in shallower water. As you see here the featherduster has its tentacles extended to trap food particles as they pass by. The particles are then channeled to the base of the tentacles where they are sorted by size. The smallest particles are sent to the mouth and the medium-sized particles are used to build the tube. They are kept in ventral sacs where they are mixed with mucus. The sacs then secrete strands of mucus and sand and are sent to the collar at the top of the tube and in time the tube is lengthened as the worm rotates inside the tube. Once the tube is formed and firmly attached to a hard surface, the worms stay inside it for the rest of their lives. And remember I told you I had to sneak up on them in the beginning, well that’s because the tentacles contain light sensing spots. When a shadow passes over the worm, its muscular structure reacts instantly, and retracts the worm into the tube and then you must wait patiently for them to re-open.
We have the puppies back and so far it’s going surprisingly well which is mostly due to the us taking them out on the trails and running the energy out of them! Off to bed, later, Barry
OLDER POST:Christmas Tree Worms, Spirobranchus giganteusNEWER POST:Common Octopus, Caribbean Octopus, CuracaoSITE MAP
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