Oxymeris
crenulata (Linnaeus, 1758)
105.9mm
Oxymeris
crenulata is common at Kwajalein and found in lagoon and seaward
reef sandy areas. On wide
sandy interisland reefs, it can often be seen attacking hemicordates (acorn
worms) that form thick spaghetti-like mounds on the surface of the sand.
Zeroing in on an active acorn worm
mound. Suppertime's getting near.
Anohter one plowed right into the acorn worm mound, which now looks flattened
and inactive. The Oxymeris is probably eating.
Sweeping away the sandy mound,
they yellowish worm is visible being eaten by the shell.
Last bit of worm going down the
hatch.
Here is a healthy hemicordate or acorn worm. They pull in sand from one end,
process it through and digest any edibles, and push the sand out the other end
coated with mucus that allows the sandy waste to maintain a tubular form for
a while before collapsing.
Created
2 April 2017
Updated 27 March 2020
Return to
Terebridae list
Kwajalein
Underwater home