Delle Chiaje, 1842
Description:
Body relatively short, cylindrical anteriorly, slightly flattened posteriorly.
Head bears a crown of six short, membranous processes cut into numerous frilly lobes, with a terminal three-lobed mouth.
Three short chaetigerous thoracic segments are short, with notopodia only. The 15-20 abdominal segments are much longer, with noto- and neuropodia. The posterior end of the body with short segments.
Notopodial chaetae of thorax are spinose capillaries, they arise directly from the epidermis; the chaetae of the third bundle are shorter than the others; parapodial lappets are absent on notopodia.
Abdominal neuropodia are wide, flattened tori with many small, bidentate hooks. Abominal notopodial chaetae are like those of thorax and they arise directly from the epidermis.
Pygidium with small, round papillae.
Size:
Up to 100 mm for 30 segments.
Tube:
Cylindrical, encrusted with sand-grains or shell-fragments, each overlapping the more posterior one like a crudely tiled roof.
Colour:
Greenish or yellowish, with paler glandular bands.
Habitat:
In various bottoms, slightly under the surface. Can also move around dragging the tube with it. At low water and in the shallow sublittoral.
Distribution:
North Sea to Öresund, Mediterranean, Indian Ocean, Pacific.