Ice worm
Encyclopedia
Ice worms are species
of the worm genus
Mesenchytraeus that live in glacial ice
. They include Mesenchytraeus solifugus
, M. harrimani
, M. kuril, M. maculatus and M. obscurus.
The first ice worms species
were discovered in 1887 in Alaska
, on the Muir Glacier
. These glacier ice worms can be found on glaciers in Alaska, Washington, Oregon and British Columbia. They have not been found in other glaciated regions of the world. The name "solifugus" is Latin for "sun-avoiding", as ice worms retreat underneath the ice before dawn. Enzymes in ice worms have very low optimal temperatures, and can be denatured at even a few degrees above 0 °C (32 °F). When ice worms are exposed to temperatures as high as 5 °C (41 °F), their membrane structures disassociate and fall apart (i.e., "melt") causing the worm itself to "liquify". Ice worms are several centimeters long, and can be black, blue, or white in color. The ice worms come to the surface of the glaciers in the evening and morning. On Suiattle Glacier in the North Cascades
population counts indicated over 7 billion ice worms on that glacier alone.
It is not known how ice worms tunnel through the ice. Some scientists believe they travel through microscopic fissures in ice sheets, while others believe they secrete some chemical which can melt ice by lowering its freezing point, like an antifreeze
. They feed on snow algae.
Robert W. Service
wrote a poem, The Ballad of the Ice-worm Cocktail, in which a fake ice worm made of spaghetti
is the subject of a bar bet. This may have contributed to the impression that ice worms are mythical creatures . There is a different song of the same name by Canadian artist Jenny Omnichord, which is highly factually accurate. Organisms similar to ice worms have appeared in science fiction in the short story Glacial by Alastair Reynolds
and the novel Fallen Dragon
by Peter F. Hamilton
. In the annual February Ice Worm Festival of Cordova, Alaska
, a long imitation ice worm is paraded through the streets like a Chinese new year
dragon dance
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 the worm 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...
Mesenchytraeus that live in glacial ice
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
. They include Mesenchytraeus solifugus
Mesenchytraeus solifugus
Mesenchytraeus solifugus is a species of Oligochaete worms commonly called ice worms. Ice worms populate coastal glaciers in North America from Alaska to northern Washington State. They are the only known worm to spend their entire life in temperatures near 0 °C. Even if other places are equally...
, M. harrimani
Mesenchytraeus harrimani
Mesenchytraeus harrimani is an ice worm, named after E. H. Harriman. The worm was first discovered by an insect trapper on board Harriman's famous Arctic expedition, and was given the name by the entomologist Trevor Kincaid. The worm can grow to almost in length and thick. Like other ice worms,...
, M. kuril, M. maculatus and M. obscurus.
The first ice worms species
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...
were discovered in 1887 in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, on the Muir Glacier
Muir Glacier
Muir Glacier is a glacier in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is currently about wide at the terminus. As recently as the mid-1980s the glacier was a tidewater glacier and calved icebergs from a wall of ice 60 m tall.Muir Glacier has undergone very rapid,...
. These glacier ice worms can be found on glaciers in Alaska, Washington, Oregon and British Columbia. They have not been found in other glaciated regions of the world. The name "solifugus" is Latin for "sun-avoiding", as ice worms retreat underneath the ice before dawn. Enzymes in ice worms have very low optimal temperatures, and can be denatured at even a few degrees above 0 °C (32 °F). When ice worms are exposed to temperatures as high as 5 °C (41 °F), their membrane structures disassociate and fall apart (i.e., "melt") causing the worm itself to "liquify". Ice worms are several centimeters long, and can be black, blue, or white in color. The ice worms come to the surface of the glaciers in the evening and morning. On Suiattle Glacier in the North Cascades
North Cascades
The North Cascades are a section of the Cascade Range of western North America. They span the border between the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. state of Washington and are officially named in Canada as the Cascade Mountains...
population counts indicated over 7 billion ice worms on that glacier alone.
It is not known how ice worms tunnel through the ice. Some scientists believe they travel through microscopic fissures in ice sheets, while others believe they secrete some chemical which can melt ice by lowering its freezing point, like an antifreeze
Antifreeze
Antifreeze is a freeze preventive used in internal combustion engines and other heat transfer applications, such as HVAC chillers and solar water heaters....
. They feed on snow algae.
Ice worms in culture
Scottish-born Canadian poet of the YukonYukon
Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service
Robert William Service was a poet and writer who has often been called "the Bard of the Yukon".Service is best known for his poems "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" and "The Cremation of Sam McGee", from his first book, Songs of a Sourdough...
wrote a poem, The Ballad of the Ice-worm Cocktail, in which a fake ice worm made of spaghetti
Spaghetti
Spaghetti is a long, thin, cylindrical pasta of Italian origin. Spaghetti is made of semolina or flour and water. Italian dried spaghetti is made from durum wheat semolina, but outside of Italy it may be made with other kinds of flour...
is the subject of a bar bet. This may have contributed to the impression that ice worms are mythical creatures . There is a different song of the same name by Canadian artist Jenny Omnichord, which is highly factually accurate. Organisms similar to ice worms have appeared in science fiction in the short story Glacial by Alastair Reynolds
Alastair Reynolds
Alastair Preston Reynolds is a British science fiction author. He specialises in dark hard science fiction and space opera. He spent his early years in Cornwall, moved back to Wales before going to Newcastle, where he read physics and astronomy. Afterwards, he earned a PhD from St Andrews, Scotland...
and the novel Fallen Dragon
Fallen Dragon
Fallen Dragon is a science fiction novel by Peter F. Hamilton. It was first published in 2001 by Macmillan. It follows the adventures of the mercenary Lawrence Newton as he attempts to capture what he believes is a fabulous treasure, only to find something of much greater...
by Peter F. Hamilton
Peter F. Hamilton
Peter F. Hamilton is a British author. He is best known for writing space opera. As of the publication of his tenth novel in 2004, his works had sold over two million copies worldwide.- Biography :...
. In the annual February Ice Worm Festival of Cordova, Alaska
Cordova, Alaska
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,454 people, 958 households, and 597 families residing in the city. The population density was 40.0 per square mile . There are 1,099 housing units at an average density of 17.9 per square mile...
, a long imitation ice worm is paraded through the streets like a Chinese new year
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year – often called Chinese Lunar New Year although it actually is lunisolar – is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is an all East and South-East-Asia celebration...
dragon dance
Dragon dance
Dragon dance is a form of traditional dance and performance in Chinese culture. Like the lion dance it is most often seen in festive celebrations. Many Chinese people often use the term "Descendants of the Dragon" as a sign of ethnic identity, as part of a trend started in the 1970s. Another...