Plumed worms protect themselves by constructing tough,
skin-like tubes that are encrusted with shells and other debris.
There were a number of them in very shallow water
just off Bird Key (Ringling Bridge) this week.
(At first, I thought this was the stem of a petticoat or other alga.
Many were growing nearby. A brief pull didn't uproot it.)
skin-like tubes that are encrusted with shells and other debris.
There were a number of them in very shallow water
just off Bird Key (Ringling Bridge) this week.
(At first, I thought this was the stem of a petticoat or other alga.
Many were growing nearby. A brief pull didn't uproot it.)
I'm not at all sure what the reddish glob to the upper right is.