In 2002, a remotely operated submersible filming a decaying gray whale in the Monterey Canyon just off the coast of California, US, captured footage of feathery red plumes growing out of its bones. A sample of these organisms was brought up to the surface and later identified as a brand-new type of bristle worm, Osedax.
Also known as snot worms, zombie worms, or bone-eating zombie worms, these strange, little-finger-sized creatures live inside a mucus-covered tube, with a feathery red plume sticking out of one end and a clump of specialised roots at the other. Their roots secrete an acid that allows them to bore into bones and access the nutrients hidden within, while their feathery plumes act as gills.
Interestingly, only female Osedax eat bones. The males are a fraction of the size and live inside the female’s protective tube, waiting for her eggs to emerge before fertilising them. A single female can host a fraternity of up to 100 breeding males!
To learn more about Osedax, scientists deliberately sink animal carcasses and wait months, sometimes years, before returning to see what has infested them. This has helped them discover more than 30 species since the first, Osedax rubiplumus, was first described in 2004.
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Top image: Monterey Peninsula by mauinow1/Getty
