Specimen image via iDigBio · BY-NC
Diopatra
Sign in to saveDiopatra is a genus of polychaete worms in the family Onuphidae.
Species
GENUS
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumAnnelida
- ClassPolychaeta
- OrderEunicida
- FamilyOnuphidae
via GBIF
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 437
- With media
- 31
- Family
- Onuphidae
- Collections
- CAS, SIO
- Recorded in
- United States
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Image
- FMIB 52594 Diopatra cuprea Head and anterior part of body, showing part of the branchiae; side view.jpg
Show 7 more facts
- taxon common name
- Diopatre
- taxon name
- Diopatra
- taxon rank
- genus
- taxonomic type
- Diopatra amboinensis
- topic's main category
- Category:Diopatra
- Commons category
- Diopatra
- taxon author citation
- Audouin & Milne Edwards, 1833
via Wikidata · CC0
~3 min read
Encyclopedic overview
3 sectionsContents
- Description
- Species
- References
Diopatra is a genus of polychaete worms in the family Onuphidae.
==Description== Members of this genus live in thick, parchment-like tubes that project from the sediment on the seabed. The tubes are covered on the outside by fragments of shell, algae, fibers and other small objects, collected by the worm and stuck in place by mucus. The worm's tube is a food-catching tool that creates a small micro-reef where small invertebrate prey reside. Diopatra dart partially out of the tube and grasp the prey with their maxillae and mandibles. Their large anterior parapodia help them to immobilize the prey.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Diopatra” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.