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Trees- ShrubsSpiral Tube Worm ( Sabella spallanzanii )
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One of the largest species in the family Sabellidae, the European fan worm is a large tube dwelling worm with a crown of feeding tentacles formed in two layers (1). One layer of tentacles is distinctly spiralled. The feeding tentacles can vary in colour from a uniform dull white to brightly banded, with stripes of orange, purple and white. Adult worms range in size from 90-400 mm, with the feeding crown accounting for roughly 45-60 mm of this length. Worms found in deeper water are generally larger. The tube of the worm is semi-hardened mucus, which is secreted by the worm as it grows. It is often covered by many small organisms and becomes wrinkled towards the base (2).
There are 14 species in the Genus Sabella; S. pavonia is also found within the Mediterranean.
Generally found in shallow subtidal areas between 1-30m depth, preferring harbours and embayments sheltered from direct wave action. It colonises both hard and soft substrata, often anchored to hard surfaces within the soft sediments. In Australia, the worm is usually found in harbours where it readily colonises man-made hard surfaces such as wharf piles and facings, channel markers, marina piles and pontoons, and submerged wrecks. Although S. Spallanzanii is a fouling organism of artificial docks and pylons it is not a typical or common fouler of ship hulls (4). It can also be found in extensive beds at densities greater than 100 individuals per square metre (2).
S. spallanzanii has separate female and male forms, which spawn at the same time. Gametes are broadcast into the water column, and it is thought that fertilisation is external. Females can shed more than 50,000 eggs if they are more than 300mm in length (2).
Native to the Mediterranean and Atlantic coast of Europe (5).
Sabella commonly forms clumps of two or more individuals, creating a canopy of feeding fans that stretches over the sediment (3).
S. spallanzanii feeds on suspended matter such as phytoplankton and zooplankton. The feeding of S. spallanzanii is most efficient at around 22℃. Under experimental conditions, S. spallanzanii can survive with no food for 30 days (2).
Unknown.
Description written by Ben Harvey (2009)
(1) Sabella spallanzanii (2007) Global Invasive Species Database [Online] Available at: http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=1046&fr=1&sts [Date Accessed: 24/03/09]
(2) Giangrande, A., Licciano, M., Pagliara, P., Gambi, M.C. 2000. Gametogenesis and larval development in Sabella spallanzanii (Polychaeta: Sabellidae) from the Mediterranean Sea Marine Biology 136: 847-861.
(3) NIMPIS (2002). Sabella spallanzanii species summary. National Introduced Marine Pest Information System [Online] Available at: http://www.marine.csiro.au/crimp/nimpis/spSummary.asp?txa=6129 [Date Accessed: 24/03/09]
(4) Currie, D.R., McArthur, M.A. and Cohen, B.F. 2000. Reproduction and distribution of the invasive European fanworm Sabella spallanzanii (Polychaeta: Sabellidae) in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, Australia, Marine Biology 136: 645-656.
(5) O’Brien, A.L., Ross, D.J. and Keough, M.J. 2006. Effects of Sabella spallanzanii physical structure on soft sediment macrofaunal assemblages, Marine and Freshwater Research 57: 363–371.
