Posted on 08/05/2022 8:00:04 AM PDT by Red Badger
The bizarre pom-pom creature is yet to be officially named.
An image of the unnamed spaghetti worm from the newly released MBARI video. (Image credit: 2012 MBARI)
A bizarre seafloor creature covered with luminous orange, spaghetti-like tentacles recently made its internet debut in newly released video footage. The unusual pom-pom-shaped creature is actually a type of segmented marine worm known as a polychaete, and it belongs to an appropriately named group: spaghetti worms.
Researchers from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) captured footage of the pasta-mimicking worm in 2012 using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV), while they were exploring the Gulf of California off the coast of Mexico. They released the video(opens in new tab) July 1 on MBARI's YouTube channel to celebrate World Polychaete Day.
This particular species of spaghetti worm has yet to be officially named, but it belongs to the genus Biremis. It has no eyes or gills and uses its colorful tentacles to catch the tiny pieces of organic detritus, also known as marine snow, that it feeds on, according to an MBARI statement(opens in new tab).
Most spaghetti worms live in burrows or tunnels below the seafloor and only poke their noodle-like tentacles into the water to snatch up bits of food. But this Biremis worm spends its life above ground and has previously been observed swimming through the water or crawling along the seafloor to find locations where food is plentiful, according to MBARI.
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
Ten year old image; still nameless.
MBARI keeps data a long time.
Looks a bit like a Tribble.
Just call it what it is, weird spaghetti worm.
the trouble with tribbles is they keep multiplying
Looks like a spin-mop...................
you type faster than i
I don’t think that is a worm. It clearly has a body and many tentacles. Not a worm.
I go for “mop head”
The really amazing thing about it is the fact that it voted for Biden in 2020.
Its like the barista who sold me coffee this morning was buried in a sand slide.
[[the trouble with tribbles is they keep multiplying]]
And before you know it you have triple the Tribbles you once had
Or maybe a clown dropped his toupee.
mbari (plural mbaris or mbari)(Nigeria, West Africa) A ceremonial clay shrine filled with clay models of humans or deities, made by the Igbo tribe.
(wiktionary)
This is getting close to exchange student from Cameroon territory.
"Beef jerky?"
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) ................
Good one. When we started MBARI we installed eight gigabytes
of optical memory for data archival. The hardware took up
a room that was around 400 ft sq!
“Ten year old image; still nameless.”
Since 2003.
” don’t think that is a worm. It clearly has a body and many tentacles. Not a worm.”
-——————A Worm-————————
spaghetti worm
Jump to navigationJump to search
English
A spaghetti worm. (Eupolymnia nesidensis)
Noun
spaghetti worm (plural spaghetti worms)
Worms with either their whole bodies or filaments attached to their bodies looking like spaghetti
cestode flatworms in the order Trypanorhyncha
polychete worms in the family Terebellidae
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.