Spirobranchus richardsmithi
Christmas Tree Worm
©Anne Hoggett: Operculum of Spirobranchus richardsmithi growing in coral Psammocora at Bommie Bay, Lizard Island.
©Anne Hoggett: Spirobranchus richardsmithi growing in coral Psammocora at Bommie Bay, Lizard Island.
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Annelida
Class
Polychaeta
Order
Sabellida
Family
Serpulidae
Genus
Spirobranchus
Species
Spirobranchus richardsmithi
Distinguishing features
Part of diagnosis by Kupriyanova et al (2015): "Opercular plate bearing a column ending in a pair of latero-dorsal spines with tips almost curving upright and a bifid medio-ventral spine with tips recurving towards opercular plate."
Size
- Size data has not been obtained.
Synonyms
Similar taxa
-
Animalia:
Christmas Tree Worm (species: Spirobranchus gardineri)
has less elaborate opercular spines than S. richardsmithi and all are directed away from the operculum rather than towards it as in S. richardsmithi (Kupriyanova et al, 2015).
Distribution
©Atlas of Living Australia: Australian distribution
Web resources
References
- Kupriyanova, E. K., Sun, Y., Ten Hove, H. A., Wong, E. and G. W. Rouse (2015). Serpulidae (Annelida) of Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia, Zootaxa, 4019 (1): 275-353. LIRS catalog number 1921.