If you think this is bad, wait till you see the video. A scavenging nemertine worm, cousin of the famed "screaming eels". That fish on the left looks like it has suddenly realized it's headed for the fish stick factory. Photo by Henry Kaiser, National Science Foundation
In case you missed it in the last few weeks, BBC’s new “Life” series (narrated by the great D.A.!) released an amazing clip of a starfish and marine nemertine (aka ribbon) worm feeding frenzy in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. They won’t allow video embedding, but go here for the superlarge youtube video in all its glory. Be warned that the seal noshing is a bit . . . graphic. If you imagine the seal made from the same stuff as gummy bears or laffy taffy, that might help a bit.
Here is another BBC article describing the video. When will we in the United States get to see “Life” in its full glory? Come on BBC, throw us a frickin’ bone. We still haven’t got “Creation” yet either, though word is it’s coming in January.
A brief perusal of the wikipedia article on nemertines reveals some compelling details; these worms have probosci that may have poisonous stylets used to attack and kill their prey. This little detail was a particular gem:
The proboscis is wrapped around the prey, which is normally other invertebrates such as crustaceans and annelids and can be many times larger than the nemertean itself, and the prey is then stabbed repeatedly with the stylet until dead.
Awwwwww. The article also sedately notes the worms are documented to reach 30 meters; some reports have indicated they may reach 50 or 60 meters. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s almost 180 feet. A blue whale reaches about 90 feet.
It seems these worms used to be thought of as closely related flatworms, like the cross-eyed Planaria of biology lab fame. Now scientists understand these worms are more complex than once thought, and more closely related to the annelid worms (which I’ve written about here before) and mollusks. Here’s a nice tree showing the relationship. And just look at all the weird, wonderful life on that tree! Have you even heard of half of those?
Finally, just to recap, I [heart] David Attenborough.
The man himself! How can I lure him to Colorado? Sadly, we have no birds-of-paradise. We have do have birds-of-ridiculous-mating-displays, though, aka sage grouse. Wildscreen's photograph of David Attenborough at ARKive's launch in Bristol, England © May 2003. Creative Commons Attribution License 2.5, click image for link.
I just watched the first half of Attenborough in Paradise the other night, and his seeming ability to casually drop Alfred Russel Wallace quotes and ad lib arresting narration is astounding. David, I salute you.
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Yeah, I couldn’t make it through the seal video. Ick. I did try, you know, as a scientist and everything. Maybe that’s why I ended up in engineering.
Sorry Amy! I know it’s not for everyone, but you get a gold star for trying. I guess the 8 different dissections I did between high school and college has helped me deal. On the other hand, I still can’t watch my own self get a shot. : )
The future fishstick is one of the critters my wife is doing her postdoc on. I know, it’s a pesky vertebrate, but it’s a beautiful example of convergent evolution. Like their avian cousins the auks and penguins, the bottom-dwelling fish of the two polar oceans look similar, but are not closely related.
Awesome! And Ben N. T., is that you? Apologies if I’ve mistaken you for someone else . . . if it is, call me sometime! Or better yet, bring your brood to Colorado! : )
wow, that was one *awesome* video. thanks for sharing!