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Staying quiet and avoiding attention is a tried and tested survival tactic for many animals, but there are few that are as good at it as the Bobbit Worm (Eunice aphroditois). Eunice aphroditois typically lives at depths between 10-40 meters, burying itself in the sea floor and exposing just a fraction of its very long body for hunting smaller worms and fish. It catches its prey with a complex feeding apparatus called a pharynx that can turn inside-out, like glove fingers, and has strong, sharp mandibles on the end. Sometimes its prey is cut completely in half because of the speed and strength of its attacks, and it can inflict a nasty bite if a human gets too close. Once the prey is caught, this fearsome nocturnal worm will shoot back into its burrow to feed.

E. aphroditois is found all over the world where the ocean is warm, and is noted for its unusually long body. Their average length is one metre, and specimens measuring a whopping three metres have been discovered in the waters of the Iberian Peninsula, Australia and Japan.

 

To view a video of a Bobbit Worm that we found in one of our tanks click herehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=refnOdW49rw