Is this 'thing' a worm??

I'm stuck. I photographed this critter in Nelson Bay (New South Wales - Australia) about a year ago and stuck it in the 'I have no idea what this is folder'. Well I've finished cleaning up this folder and this is the only critter left.

The animals was about 7cm and found in 8 metres of water.

Any suggestions?

Sure is, that's a sea mouse Dave. Polychaete family Aphroditidae, genus Aphrodita. Members of this family have a variety of spines & hairs, and in some the dorsal hairs are camoflagued by attached sand, silt, detritus. The iridescent hairs are natural photonic crystal fibers - see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/sci/tech/1099278.stm

So this was your last mystery critter? Obvioiusly it's time for you to go out & photograph some more.

Cheers, Leslie

Sure is, that's a sea mouse Dave. Polychaete family Aphroditidae, genus Aphrodita. Members of this family have a variety of spines & hairs, and in some the dorsal hairs are camoflagued by attached sand, silt, detritus. The iridescent hairs are natural photonic crystal fibers - see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/sci/tech/1099278.stm

 

So this was your last mystery critter? Obvioiusly it's time for you to go out & photograph some more.

 

Cheers, Leslie

nice shots Dave

I've photographed them here a couple times in LA and sent the photos to Leslie, but they are very rarely seen. Their optical properties are amazing!

Scott