Eunice Aphroditois aka the Bobbit Worm... named after the oh so famous dismemberment of a certain John's appendage. You may ask why a Eunice is associated with a eunuch? Well the female bobbit worm severs the male's sex organ after mating, loping it off with her sharp bony plates and then feeds it to her young. John Bobbit must be thanking heaven that Lorena never thought of that last bit. Humans don't have the same imagination I guess. (And yes if you haven't guessed, the sex organ bit is a bit of a myth, probably the wetdream of an over imaginative teenager!)
Sony PD170P still frame
Location: (well I could tell you but I'd have to let the worm get you)
Bobbit worm!!! That's a good idea for a name.
I think your pics have a very very high biological interest, I've never seen nothing like this worm and reading what you wrote, watching the images is very useful for learning about diffrent creatures. Shots are great cose-ups with a lot of deatils and a very correct lightning. Good job! (maybe "good job" are not the most appropiate words to say after Eunice's mating
Thanks for sharing!
Eeech!!! I've seen some of those neat looking critters diving in South Florida. I saw one out foraging during the day and its mouth looked exactly like that of the alien creature from the movie, Predator. It fed like the alien too!
There is mention in Roger Steene's Coral Seas book that they can reach a length of over 3 meters and have been known to attack divers. Lucky for me the ones I've seen have only been ~6 inches in length.
You somehow apreciate the human mating ritual a triffle more when relating to those creature, I certainly hope reincarnation is a load of crap, cause I would hate to come back as one of those male gender worm YEECH!
Good shoots, whenever you think science fiction's movies go too far, just go diving and you realize there is still a lot of movie material to exploit !
Cheers
Love the pics! You really caught the jaws & antennae well. Did you use some bait to keep it out of it's burrow?
Funny story - where'd you get it? - but kinda of unlikely as males & females never meet. Like coral, they shed their eggs & sperm into the water. The eggs & sperm come into contact, fertilization occurs, the larvae develop in the water, & eventually settle back on the bottom. These are called bobbitts because some smart guy thought the open jaws look like scissors.
Would you mind if I downloaded your pics for my research files?
Cheers, Leslie
Nice pics and funny story!! Never seen a pic of one of these so clear and close up. Good job!! ...and thanks to Leslie for dispelling the myth.
That's a good idea for a name.
