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Glossary |
In the
deep ocean, near the hydrothermal vents you will find the Tube worms,
the organisms that look like giant lipsticks. Here are some facts
that may be interesting to you.
Habitat
- In the East Pacific Rise, on the ocean floor, it is ruled by Tube worms.
- Tube worms are found living around the hydrothermal vents.
Interesting Facts
- <>Tube worms are known to be in the group of the fastest growing invertebrates.
- <>Scientists are able to study the Tube worms because oceanographers take the Tube worms up to the surface in tubes that are 1 and 1/2 meters long.
- When scientists found this whole ecosystem, they were shocked that Tube worms and other animals were able to stand the pressure on the deep ocean floor and don’t need sunlight for a source of energy.
- The Tube worms also use the chemicals in the water as a source of energy.
Tube Worm History
- The fossils of the brachiopods and Momoplacophorans tell scientists that the tube worms may have been alive the same time as these other creatures.
- Scientists never knew about the Tube worms until the oceanographers explored the ocean floor and discovered the hydrothermal vents.
Appearance
- The plume is the most interior part of the Tube worm, which sticks out of the Tube worms.
- As an adult a Tube worm has no mouth or gut and depend on bacteria, that's inside them, to survive.
- When Tube worms are born, they have a mouth and gut to trap the bacteria in their body, which they need when the Tube worms are adults. As the Tube worm gets older, the mouth and gut disappear!
- The white part of the Tube worm is made of material called, Chitin, which is pronounced kite-in.
Diet
- Tube worms use bacteria that go into their body when they're young. This bacteria helps it to convert the chemicals that the hydrothermal vents release into food for the Tube worm.
Predator/ Danger for the Tube worm
- The vent crab and other creatures in the deep ocean floor, nibble pieces off from the plume for food.
