| Emplectonema neesii | |
|---|---|
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| Emplectonema neesii figure 6 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Nemertea |
| Class: | Enopla |
| Order: | Hoplonemertea |
| Family: | Emplectonematidae |
| Genus: | Emplectonema |
| Species: | E. neesii |
| Binomial name | |
| Emplectonema neesii Örsted, 1843 | |
| Synonyms | |
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Emplectonema neesii is a species of ribbon worm in the phylum Nemertea. It is found on the middle and lower regions of the shore, under stones and in shingle and is common round the coasts of Britain and Ireland.
Like other ribbon worms, this species is not divided into segments but is long, thin and contractile. It is usually ten to fifteen centimetres long but can extend to thirty centimetres. The head is bluntly pointed and has a slit at the front. It bears many eyes, usually in two groups, but these are hard to see because of the worm’s colouring and texture. There is an extensible proboscis above the mouth. The head is delineated by a pale streak where it joins the body. The dorsal surface of the body is rounded and brown with longitudinal streaks and a faint iridescence. The ventral surface is off white and flattened. [2]
Emplectonema neesii is restricted to the Atlantic, Irish Sea and North Sea coasts of Europe. It occurs from Iceland to the Mediterranean Sea. It is found in the littoral zone and at a depth of up to thirty metres. It is usually beneath stones and boulders, in rock crevices and fissures, among the holdfasts of Laminaria, among the byssus threads of Mytilus colonies or on a variety of soft substrates including sand, silty-sand, shelly-gravel and shingle. [3]
When disturbed, this worm tends to curl up, writhe and wriggle. Movement is performed by small waves of muscular contraction that flow along the body from tail to head. Several waves may occur simultaneously and the worm glides forward slowly and smoothly, the swellings running evenly along the body. It is carnivorous, being both a predator and a scavenger. [1]
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shells or coralline algae. Sediments settle in different densities and structures, depending on the local wave action and weather, creating different textures, colors and gradients or layers of material.
In oceanography, geomorphology, and geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material and rises from the bed of a body of water to near the surface. It often refers to those submerged ridges, banks, or bars that rise near enough to the surface of a body of water as to constitute a danger to navigation. Shoals are also known as sandbanks, sandbars, or gravelbars. Two or more shoals that are either separated by shared troughs or interconnected by past or present sedimentary and hydrographic processes are referred to as a shoal complex.
A pebble is a clast of rock with a particle size of 4–64 mm (0.16–2.52 in) based on the Udden-Wentworth scale of sedimentology. Pebbles are generally considered larger than granules and smaller than cobbles. A rock made predominantly of pebbles is termed a conglomerate. Pebble tools are among the earliest known man-made artifacts, dating from the Palaeolithic period of human history.
The lugworm or sandworm is a large marine worm of the phylum Annelida. Its coiled castings are a familiar sight on a beach at low tide but the animal itself is rarely seen except by those who, from curiosity or to use as fishing bait, dig the worm out of the sand.
Coastal geography is the study of the constantly changing region between the ocean and the land, incorporating both the physical geography and the human geography of the coast. It includes understanding coastal weathering processes, particularly wave action, sediment movement and weather, and the ways in which humans interact with the coast.
Seashore wildlife habitats exist from the Tropics to the Arctic and Antarctic. Seashores and beaches provide varied habitats in different parts of the world, and even within the same beach. Phytoplankton is at the bottom of some food chains, while zooplankton and other organisms eat phytoplankton. Kelp is also autotrophic and at the bottom of many food chains. Coastal areas are stressed through rapid changes, for example due to tides.
Coastal fish, also called inshore fish or neritic fish, inhabit the sea between the shoreline and the edge of the continental shelf. Since the continental shelf is usually less than 200 metres (660 ft) deep, it follows that pelagic coastal fish are generally epipelagic fish, inhabiting the sunlit epipelagic zone. Coastal fish can be contrasted with oceanic fish or offshore fish, which inhabit the deep seas beyond the continental shelves.
The common dragonet is a species of dragonet which is widely distributed in the eastern North Atlantic where it is common near Europe from Norway and Iceland southwards. It is a demersal species that occurs over sand bottoms. It lives to a maximum age of around seven years. It is caught in bycatch by fisheries and is used in the aquarium trade.
Marine habitats are habitats that support marine life. Marine life depends in some way on the saltwater that is in the sea. A habitat is an ecological or environmental area inhabited by one or more living species. The marine environment supports many kinds of these habitats. Marine habitats can be divided into coastal and open ocean habitats. Coastal habitats are found in the area that extends from as far as the tide comes in on the shoreline out to the edge of the continental shelf. Most marine life is found in coastal habitats, even though the shelf area occupies only seven percent of the total ocean area. Open ocean habitats are found in the deep ocean beyond the edge of the continental shelf.
Hydroides norvegica is a species of tube-forming annelid worm in the family Serpulidae. It is found on submerged rocks, shells, piles and boats in many coastal areas around the world. It is the type species of the genus Hydroides.
Amphiporus lactifloreus is a species of ribbon worm in the phylum Nemertea. It is found on the lower shore, under stones, in shingle and amongst the fronds of seaweed.
Eupolymnia nebulosa is a species of sedentary marine polychaete worm in the Terebellidae family. It builds a tube of slime under stones or large shells on soft substrates on the lower shore and down to depths of about 500 metres.
Lanice conchilega, commonly known as the sand mason worm, is a species of burrowing marine polychaete worm. It builds a characteristic tube which projects from the seabed, consisting of cemented sand grains and shell fragments with a fringe at the top.
Abarenicola pacifica or the Pacific lugworm is a large species of polychaete worm found on the west coast of North America and also in Japan. The worms live out of sight in burrows under the sand and produce casts which are visible on the surface.
Ophiura albida is a species of brittle star in the order Ophiurida. It is typically found on the seabed in the north eastern Atlantic Ocean and in the Mediterranean Sea and is sometimes known as the serpent's table brittle star.
The roundel skate or Texas clearnose skate is a species of cartilaginous fish in the family Rajidae. It is found in the Gulf of Mexico, Southeast Florida and the Yucatan Peninsula.
Tubulanus polymorphus is a species of ribbon worm in the phylum Nemertea. It is found in the northern Atlantic Ocean and the northern Pacific Ocean. It occurs on the lower shore down to about 50 m (160 ft), on sand or gravel, under stones and among seaweed.
Tubulanus superbus, commonly known as the football jersey worm, is a species of ribbon worm in the phylum Nemertea. Found in the northern Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, it occurs from the lower shore down to about 80 m (260 ft), on sand or gravel.
Lineus sanguineus, the banded nemertean or social lineus, is a species of nemertean ribbon worm in the family Lineidae. It occurs in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean as well as on both coasts of North America. It burrows in muddy sand from the mid-tidal zone downwards and conceals itself in crevices and under stones.
Procerodes littoralis is a species of triclad flatworm widely distributed on the shores of northwestern Europe and on the east coast of North America from Newfoundland northwards.