(Dalyell, 1853)
Description:
Body cylindrical with up to 75 chaetigers; 8 thoracic chaetigers.
First chaetiger with notopodial chaetae only. Thoracic notopodial chaetae are capillaries on short, cylindrical notopodia. Thoracic neuropodial chaetae are uncini on long tori.
Abdominal neuropodial chaetae are long capillaries with asymmetrical sides. Notopodia bear uncini.
Crown with up to 25 pairs of radioli, connected by a low membrane. Each radiole with 9-20 pairs of eyes and stylodes. Two long palps present. Collar short but covering the base of the crown, dorsally, ventrally and often also laterally incised. Thoracic uncini without companion chaetae. Abdominal chaetae in a C-shape with additional chaetae partially filling the arc (B. bombyx-detail).
Pygidium with two round papillae
Size:
Up to 50 mm for 75 chaetigers.
Tube:
Clay-tube, posteriorly encrusted with sand and shell-fragments.
Colour:
Very variable: yellowish, brownish or violet; crown with brown or violet bands.
Habitat:
Muddy bottoms, between seaweeds, under stones and shells; sublittoral.
Distribution:
Eastern North Atlantic to Gulf of Guinea, Mediterranean, North Sea to Öresund.