Hermodice carunculata

Hermodice carunculata, the bearded fireworm, is a type of marine bristleworm belonging to the Amphinomidae family, native to the tropical Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

Description

Bearded fireworms are usually 15 cm (6 inches) in average length, but can reach up to 30 cm (12 inches).

At first glance, this fireworm looks like a centipede with its elongated and flattened appearance, multiple segments, white silks, and parapodia and gills located on the side of its body. Its colors are varied and range from greenish, to yellowish, to reddish, grayish through white with a pearly glow. The body consists of 60 to 150 identical segments separated from each other by a thin white line and protected by cuticles. Each segment has a pair of parapodia, a structure for locomotion, clusters of stinging white bristles, and red or orange gills all in bilateral position. The anterior part of the worm can be recognized by small growths, called caruncle, which have the same color of the gills on the first four segments. The mouth is ventral and is located on the second segment. The head is shown on the first segment and includes the eyes and other sensory organs.

Distribution and habitat

The bearded fireworm lives throughout the tropical coastal waters of the Atlantic Ocean. On the eastern side they are found from Algeria to Liberia, and on the western side from the southeast coast of the United States to Guyana, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. They are also found in the Mediterranean Sea especially around the Italian coasts. A significant population structure exists between the Caribbean / Brazil population of H. carunculata, and those from the eastern Atlantic (Canary Islands) and eastern Mediterranean.