Hydroides norvegica
Encyclopedia
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
.
Polychaete
s, or marine bristle worms, have elongated bodies divided into many segments. Each segment
may bear setae (bristles) and parapodia
(paddle-like appendages). Some species live freely, either swimming, crawling or burrowing, and these are known as "errant". Others live permanently in tubes, either calcareous or parchment-like, and these are known as "sedentary".
ous bristles called chaeta
e. There are twelve to nineteen pairs of tentacles surrounding the operculum
, which looks slantingly cut. The head of the worm protrudes from the tube and is surrounded by a crown of tentacles. It looks like a low, round cup, with a fairly small mouth in the middle, and 16 small teeth or beams around the head’s edge. The worm grows to up to thirty millimetres long. The abdomen is red and crown is also red with white cross-bands. The operculum is either red or has two red rings. Two distinguishing features are the opercular whorl and the chaetae forming a collar. The tube is white and chalky, about fifty milliimetres long and two millimetres wide. It is thin walled with many curved growth lines on the sides. The surface is smooth and often has distinct growth rings. The tube meanders irregularly over the substrate
.
, the Mediterranean Sea
, the Indian Ocean
, the Persian Gulf
and the Red Sea
. It is found from the eulittoral zone
to around 350 metres and is a true marine species. This is in contrast to the harbour fouling invasive species Hydroides elegans with which it is sometimes confused.
into the species involved in fouling man made structures immersed in the sea at depths of fifty and one hundred feet. The dominant species involved were found to be the little striped barnacle, Balanus amphitrite
, the crested oyster, Ostrea equestris and Hydroides norvegica and a stable community
was produced after two to four months at fifty feet and slightly longer at one hundred feet. In four months, H. norvegica reached a length of three centimetres, and with the other fouling organisms covered the panels that were used. A late arriving fouling organism was the brown alga, Padina Japonica. This was not present till the fourth month but was dominant after nine months, extending to nine centimetres in diameter and displacing the other organisms.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of tube-forming annelid
Annelid
The annelids , formally called Annelida , are a large phylum of segmented worms, with over 17,000 modern species including ragworms, earthworms and leeches...
worm in the family Serpulidae
Serpulidae
Serpulidae is a family of sessile, tube-building annelid worms in the class Polychaeta. The members of this family differ from the sabellid tube worms in that they have a specialized operculum that blocks the entrance of their tubes when they withdraw into the tubes. In addition, serpulids secrete...
. It is found on submerged rocks, shells, piles and boats in many coastal areas around the world. It is the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
of the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Hydroides
Hydroides
Hydroides is a genus of tube-forming serpulid worm found on submerged saltwater rocks, shells, and boats in many coastal areas around the world.- Species :It contains the following species:* Hydroides bispinosa...
.
Polychaete
Polychaete
The Polychaeta or polychaetes are a class of annelid worms, generally marine. Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are made of chitin. Indeed, polychaetes are sometimes referred to as bristle worms. More than 10,000...
s, or marine bristle worms, have elongated bodies divided into many segments. Each segment
Segmentation (biology)
Segmentation in biology refers to either a type of gastrointestinal motility or the division of some animal and plant body plans into a series of repetitive segments. This article will focus on the segmentation of animal body plans, specifically using the examples of the phyla Arthropoda,...
may bear setae (bristles) and parapodia
Parapodium
Parapodia , singular parapodium, are paired, un-jointed lateral outgrowths from the bodies of two different invertebrate groups, which are primarily marine in habitat...
(paddle-like appendages). Some species live freely, either swimming, crawling or burrowing, and these are known as "errant". Others live permanently in tubes, either calcareous or parchment-like, and these are known as "sedentary".
Description
This serpulid worm lives inside a protective calcareous tube. The worm has about one hundred segments each bearing chitinChitin
Chitin n is a long-chain polymer of a N-acetylglucosamine, a derivative of glucose, and is found in many places throughout the natural world...
ous bristles called chaeta
Chaeta
A chaeta or cheta is a chitinous bristle or seta found on an insect, arthropod or annelid worms such as the earthworm, although the term is also frequently used to describe similar structures in other invertebrates. The plural form is chaetae or chetae.In the Polychaeta, they are located on the...
e. There are twelve to nineteen pairs of tentacles surrounding the operculum
Operculum
Operculum may refer to:*Operculum , a stiff structure resembling a lid or a small door that opens and closes**Operculum , a lid on the shell of some gastropods**Operculum , a lid on the orifice of some bryozoans...
, which looks slantingly cut. The head of the worm protrudes from the tube and is surrounded by a crown of tentacles. It looks like a low, round cup, with a fairly small mouth in the middle, and 16 small teeth or beams around the head’s edge. The worm grows to up to thirty millimetres long. The abdomen is red and crown is also red with white cross-bands. The operculum is either red or has two red rings. Two distinguishing features are the opercular whorl and the chaetae forming a collar. The tube is white and chalky, about fifty milliimetres long and two millimetres wide. It is thin walled with many curved growth lines on the sides. The surface is smooth and often has distinct growth rings. The tube meanders irregularly over the substrate
Substrate
Substrate may mean:*Substrate , Natural stone, masonry surface, ceramic and porcelain tiles*Substrate , the material used in the bottom of an aquarium*Substrate , the material used in the bottom of a vivarium or terrarium...
.
Distribution
This species is found in the Atlantic OceanAtlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
, the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
and the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
. It is found from the eulittoral zone
Intertidal zone
The intertidal zone is the area that is above water at low tide and under water at high tide . This area can include many different types of habitats, with many types of animals like starfish, sea urchins, and some species of coral...
to around 350 metres and is a true marine species. This is in contrast to the harbour fouling invasive species Hydroides elegans with which it is sometimes confused.
Biology
A study was made of the rate of growth of H. norvegica and other sedentary organisms in Madras Harbour, India. The worms attached themselves in very large numbers to suitable surfaces and secreted translucent tubes which later becomes calcareous. The tubes grew vigorously along the surface of the substrate but were so crowded that they sometimes grew vertically and were subsequently broken off by wave action. In the laboratory, tanks containing artificially fertilized eggs were kept and the worms underwent all the normal stages of development and attained a very large size (ten centimetres long). Individuals became mature and started breeding within ninety days of settling on the substrate.Marine fouling
A study was made in HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
into the species involved in fouling man made structures immersed in the sea at depths of fifty and one hundred feet. The dominant species involved were found to be the little striped barnacle, Balanus amphitrite
Balanus amphitrite
Balanus amphitrite is a species of acorn barnacle in the Balanidae family. Its common names include the striped barnacle, the purple acorn barnacle and Amphitrite's rock barnacle. It is found in warm and temperate waters worldwide....
, the crested oyster, Ostrea equestris and Hydroides norvegica and a stable community
Fouling community
Fouling communities are communities of organisms found on the sides of docks, marinas, harbors, and boats throughout the world. These communities are characterized by the presence of a variety of sessile organisms including ascidians, bryozoans, mussels, tube building polychaetes, sea anemones,...
was produced after two to four months at fifty feet and slightly longer at one hundred feet. In four months, H. norvegica reached a length of three centimetres, and with the other fouling organisms covered the panels that were used. A late arriving fouling organism was the brown alga, Padina Japonica. This was not present till the fourth month but was dominant after nine months, extending to nine centimetres in diameter and displacing the other organisms.