Christmas Tree Worm Phylum

This is a worm.

Christmas tree worm phylum. Annelids are categorized taxonomically into many classes. These christmas tree structures are actually specialized mouth appendages. Marine bio midterm 1.

And these worms are annelids. The christmas tree shape shown in the image is the animal s radioles which can be up to about 1 1 2 inches in diameter. Each spiral is composed of feather like tentacles which are heavily ciliated.

Giganteus binomial name spirobranchus giganteus spirobranchus giganteus commonly known as the christmas tree worm is a tube building polychaete worm belonging to the family serpulidae. And even though it is blue this is a christmas tree worm. Christmas tree worms are heterotrophic and with an obligate relationship with species of coral.

These animals can be a variety of colors including red orange yellow blue and white. These organisms have a indirect biphasic lifecycle. The hammerhead worm is one of only a very few terrestrial invertebrates known to produce the neurotoxin tetrodotoxin.

These appendages trap prey and transport the food straight towards the worm s mouth. This means that there are two phases that complete the lifecycle. The food is then passed down a food groove by ciliary tracts lines of tiny hair like extensions on the surface of cells that generate water currents to move food or mucus.

The rest of the worm s body is in a tube in the coral which is formed after the larval worm settles on the coral and then the coral grows around the worm the worm s legs parapodia and bristles chatae. Takes water in one siphon goes through mucus gills leave through a different siphon. They express closed circulatory systems in the same fundamental manner that homo sapiens do.