Specimen image via iDigBio · BY-NC-SA
Torquaratoridae
Sign in to saveTorquaratoridae (Latin for "neck plow") is a family of acorn worms (Hemichordata) that lives in deep waters between 350 and 4000 meters. They can grow up to 1 m (3 ft) in length and have semitransparent gelatinous bodies, often brightly colored.
Species
FAMILY
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumHemichordata
- ClassEnteropneusta
- OrderEnteropneusta incertae sedis
- FamilyTorquaratoridae
via GBIF
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 80
- With media
- 20
- Family
- Torquaratoridae
- Collections
- SIO, AUM, ALMNH, USNM
- Recorded in
- United States, Mexico
~3 min read
Encyclopedic overview
2 sectionsContents
- Genera
- References
Torquaratoridae (Latin for "neck plow") is a family of acorn worms (Hemichordata) that lives in deep waters between 350 and 4000 meters. They can grow up to 1 m (3 ft) in length and have semitransparent gelatinous bodies, often brightly colored.
Cilia on their underside are used to glide over the ocean floor at about 8 cm (3 in) per hour, while detritus is sucked into their gut, leaving behind a constant trail of feces. When deciding to move to new feeding locations, they empty their gut and drift over the bottom, aided by an excreted balloon of mucus.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Torquaratoridae” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.