White-tuft Protula
The White-tuft Protula, Protula tubularia, is a marine worm belonging to the class of sedentary Polychaetes and the order of Serpulidae which lives in a white calcareous tube and is present throughout the Mediterranean Sea at depths that can vary from 10 meters to over 100 metres. It is a very common annelid throughout the Mediterranean and therefore we can easily find it among the Posidonia oceanica meadows, on the various detrital seabeds and in coral reefs. The white color distinguishes this worm from other species of the same family. This video was made while in snorkeling a few meters below the surface of the sea. This species is found in the waters of the Mediterranean sea, the English Channel, the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea (off the coasts of Norway, Great Britain and Ireland), but also along the coasts of South Africa and New Zealand. protula dal ciuffo bianco
The Serpulidae are a family of sessile, tube-building annelid worms in the class Polychaeta. The members of this family differ from other sabellid tube worms in that they have a specialized operculum that blocks the entrance of their tubes when they withdraw into the tubes. In addition, serpulids secrete tubes of calcium carbonate. Serpulids are the most important biomineralizers among annelids. About 300 species in the family Serpulidae are known, all but one of which live in saline waters. The earliest serpulids are known from the Permian (Wordian to late Permian).
The blood of most species of serpulid and sabellid worms contains the oxygen-binding pigment chlorocruorin. This is used to transport oxygen to the tissues. It has an affinity for carbon monoxide which is 570 times as strong as that of the haemoglobin found in human blood. Empty serpulid shells can sometimes be confused with the shells of a family of marine gastropod mollusk, the Vermetidae or worm snails. The most obvious difference is that serpulid shells are dull inside, whereas the molluscan vermetid shells are shiny inside.
(extract from Wikipedia)
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