Are polychaete worms decomposers?
The decomposers are the polychaete worm and the queen conch.
Are bristle worms decomposers?
As I mentioned, bristle worms are detritivores. They happily dig through the muck, gunk, and detritus in your tank and eat whatever they encounter that’s rotting and spoiling the water quality.
Are polychaete worms secondary consumers?
Polychaetes are important components of trophic webs in sandy beaches, mainly due to their abundance and diversity of feeding modes, acting as detritivores or primary/secondary consumers.
Is polychaete a parasite?
The parasitic polychaete known as Asetocalamyzas laonicola (Calamyzidae) is in fact the dwarf male of the spionid Scolelepis laonicola (comb. nov.) Abstract. The parasite has an extensive coelomic cavity, complete septae, and well-developed segmental nephridia, circulatory, and digestive systems.
Is Coral a decomposer?
Follow Us: The coral reef itself is an ecosystem that has producers, consumers and decomposers; however, the coral polyps within the coral reef are known as primary consumers because they consume producers.
Is plankton a decomposer?
Plankton also play a role at the end of the food web—as decomposers and detritivores.
Do polychaetes have gills?
Polychaetes that live in tubes use their parapodia to circulate oxygenated water into tight spaces, and some have feathery external gills. Since there is an exception to every rule, some polychaetes have no parapodia at all.
What is polychaete in biology?
The Polychaeta /ˌpɒlɪˈkiːtə/, also known as the bristle worms or polychaetes, are a paraphyletic class of annelid worms, generally marine. Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are made of chitin.
What kind of worms are found in polychaetes?
This latter group until recently was considered either as one or two phyla and included the Vestiminifera, which are restricted to cold and hot vents, and the Pogonophora, or thin worms found in sediments. But recent studies have shown that these worms are closely related to each other and represent a family within the polychaetes.
What are the effects of polychaetes on the environment?
Known effects of bioturbation by common polychaetes (Nereis spp. and Arenicola marina) in Northern European coastal waters on sediment carbon diagenesis is summarized and assessed. The physical impact of irrigation and reworking activity of the involved polychaete species is evaluated and related to their basic biology.
Which is the best example of a polychaete?
Subsequent enlargement of the tunnels creates opportunities for other polychaetes, which, unlike the relatively innocuous Polydora spp., are easily visible by consumers, for example, Ceratonereis tridentata ( Wells and Wells, 1962) and Nereis diversicolor ( McGladdery et al., 1993a ).
What kind of diet does a Polychaeta have?
Polychaetes exhibit a wide range of feeding strategies, ranging from those that are carnivorous predators, deposit feeders, suspension feeders, herbivores, and opportunistic feeders. A few species are parasitic, and some are commensal.
What kind of environment do polychaetes live in?
A few groups have evolved to live in terrestrial environments, like Namanereidinae with many terrestrial species, but are restricted to humid areas. Some have even evolved cutaneous invaginations for aerial gas exchange. One notable polychaete, the Pompeii worm ( Alvinella pompejana) is endemic to the hydrothermal vents of the Pacific Ocean.
What kind of animals are descended from polychaetes?
Groups that may be descended from the polychaetes include the oligochaetes ( earthworms and leeches ), sipunculans, and echiurans. The Pogonophora and Vestimentifera were once considered separate phyla, but are now classified in the polychaete family Siboglinidae .
Which is the longest living species of polychaete?
A recently discovered genus, Osedax, includes a species nicknamed the “bone-eating snot flower”. Another remarkable polychaete is Hesiocaeca methanicola, which lives on methane clathrate deposits. Lamellibrachia luymesi is a cold seep tube worm that reaches lengths of over 3 m and may be the most long-lived animal,…
What kind of food does a decomposer eat?
While decomposers break down dead, organic materials, detritivores—like millipedes, earthworms, and termites—eat dead organisms and wastes. (singular: alga) diverse group of aquatic organisms, the largest of which are seaweeds. large phylum consisting of segmented worms, including terrestrial, marine, and freshwater species.
