What unusual features were discovered in the tube worms?

What unusual features were discovered in the tube worms?

When they discovered that the tubeworms had no mouth, digestive tract, or anus, they learned that bacteria live inside the tubeworms’ bodies in a remarkable organ called a trophosome.

What was unique about the tube worm Riftia?

Tube Worm Fun Facts Tubeworms (Riftia pachyptila) are unique animals found in oceans as they are known to provide chemicals to the bacteria present inside them in order to oxidize them and produce energy.

What is the most noticeable characteristic of the giant tube worm?

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 the biggest worm ever found?

The longest earthworm is Microchaetus rappi of South Africa. In 1967 a giant specimen measuring 6.7 m (21 ft) in length when naturally extended and 20 mm (0.8 in) in diameter was found on a road between Alice and King William’s Town.

What kind of worm is a tube worm?

Tube worm. Tube worm, any of a number of tube-dwelling marine worms belonging to the annelid class Polychaeta ( see polychaete; feather-duster worm; tentacle worm ). Other tube-dwelling worms include the horseshoe worm (phylum Phoronida) and the beardworm (phylum Pogonophora).

How are particles caught in the mouth of a tube worm?

So, the neat part is that when the bottom to top current is produced, small particles in the water are caught in eddies created on the upper side of the radioles and are caught and moved to the worm’s mouth by more cilia the grooves.

Where are the fossils of a tube worm found?

Fossil moulds and casts of worm tubes, mollusc shells, and microbial filaments have been identified in both modern ridge hydrothermal deposits and in ancient deposits of Cretaceous, Jurassic, Devonian, and Silurian ages. This fossil record establishes the antiquity of vent communities and the long evolutionary history of specific faunal groups.

How are symbionts acquired in a tube worm?

Acquisition of symbionts is horizontal in some cases, that is, the symbionts are acquired from free-living cells in the environment. In other cases, symbionts are transferred vertically, that is, via fertilized eggs. Chemolithotrophic symbionts have two absolute requirements: access to oxygen and to sulfide or methane.