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"Beautiful, beautiful worms. Need to look them up. Fairly sure I've seen (and possible photographed) these before. Time to learn them... Update: after consulting Light's, Kozloff, BPT, and this dead ringer of a photo at CalPhotos I think this is probably Phragmatopoma californica, the common sandcastle worm. Can anyone confirm? Each tube was no more than 1-3 cm long. Observed in a kelp holdfast at ~30 ft depth, off Pacific Grove, CA. Also of note: an NYTimes article on researchers studying this worms sand adhesive for biomedical applications (or perhaps ""biomedical inspiration"" would be more accurate). Via oceanwire."
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Intertidal on exposed rock above low tide waterline. Second photo is a 60x closeup of one hole (they appear to be made from sand).
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Intertidal on exposed rock above low tide waterline. Second photo is a 60x closeup of one hole (they appear to be made from sand).
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Sandcastle worm colony
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Soft Intertidal coral-like structures but made of sand secreted together by colonies of inhabitants
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Soft Intertidal coral-like structures but made of sand secreted together by colonies of inhabitants
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Soft Intertidal coral-like structures but made of sand secreted together by colonies of inhabitants
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There was a very large bank of these, mid way up in the intertidal zone, individual tubes quite brittle, but the mass of them quite substantial. Some tubes were 10cm long, others perhaps longer but hidden in the bank of them.
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There was a very large bank of these, mid way up in the intertidal zone, individual tubes quite brittle, but the mass of them quite substantial. Some tubes were 10cm long, others perhaps longer but hidden in the bank of them.
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There was a very large bank of these, mid way up in the intertidal zone, individual tubes quite brittle, but the mass of them quite substantial. Some tubes were 10cm long, others perhaps longer but hidden in the bank of them.
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There was a very large bank of these, mid way up in the intertidal zone, individual tubes quite brittle, but the mass of them quite substantial. Some tubes were 10cm long, others perhaps longer but hidden in the bank of them.