A Bobbit worm wouldn't look out of place in Doctor Who, and bears an uncanny resemblance to the killer worms from the 1990 B-movie Tremors. Stuart Blackman explains all you need to know about this fearsome predator.
What are Bobbit worms
This alien-looking weird sea creature is a polychaete worm, called Eunice aphroditois.
How long are Bobbit worms?
Bobbit worms can grow up to three metres long.
Where do Bobbit worms live?
Bobbit worms inhabit warm seas worldwide, and hide its bulk by burying itself deep in the sediment on the ocean floor. With only its tentacles exposed, the worm resembles an innocuous frond of seaweed.
What do Bobbit worms eat?
Bobbit worms have an omnivorous diet, relishing small fish including octopus, various worms, alongside detritus, seaweed, and other algae.
How do they catch their prey?
The predator uses its sensory appendages to detect passing prey. When something ventures close enough, it lurches from the sand like a coiled spring. snapping its jaws over its victim in a strike so ferocious that the prey is often sliced in half.
Bobbit worms have a muscular, tooth-studded throat lining, or pharynx, that is turned inside-out and thrust from the mouth to engulf prey.
After being caught the prey is then dragged back to the burrow for consumption.
Did you know the venomous bristles adorning its body have reportedly caused permanent numbness in humans? A doctor couldn't help with that one - unless he had a Tardis.
Why are they called Bobbit worms?
Bobbit worms are named after Lorena Bobbitt, who became infamous for cutting off her husband's penis.
Learn about more weird animals that live on our planet