Whale Worms (Osedax spp.) aka “Bone Eating Snotflowers”
via MBARI
Scientists working at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) in 2004 discovered two new species of unique tubeworms that feed on the bones of dead whales. The worms are in a new genus called “Osedax,” which is Latin for “bone devourer.”
The worms’ bodies and feeding strategies are very different from most animals. They have no eyes, legs, mouths or stomachs, but they do have colorful feathery plumes and green “roots.” The reddish plumes extend into the water and act as gills. They connect to a muscular trunk, which can be withdrawn into a transparent tube when the worms are disturbed. At the other end of the trunk, hidden inside the whale bone, the body widens to form a large egg sac. The green roots, branching off from the egg sac, grow into the whale bone similar to the way garden plant roots spread into the ground. They are filled with symbiotic* bacteria that break down the fats and oils inside the bone, providing food for the worms.
