The Digestive Tract of Hermodice Carunculata (Pallas). Polychaeta: Amphinomidae

Abstract

Hermodice carunculata is common among the coral reefs and shallow waters of the West Indies where it has been observed to feed on living coral. Examination of gut contents reveals that this species is probably omnivorous. The digestive tract consists of five regions, a buccal cavity which is eversible, a muscular pharynx, a short oesophagus, an intestine which can be separated histologically into anterior and posterior regions, and a rectum. Elaborations of the buccal epithelium form muscular and glandular areas. Secretory materials are formed in considerable quantity by the glandular portion of the buccal cavity and by the anterior intestine. Secretory cells present in lesser abundance in other areas are described. Amoebocytes laden with foreign particles may accumulate in the wall of the rectum. Other foreign inclusion masses may be found in the epithelia of the buccal cavity, pharynx, and oesophagus as well as in the mid-ventral line of the body wall. The various parts of the digestive tract were tested for Y metachromasia with azure A and were treated with the periodic acid Schiff technique. The stomatogastric nervous system was followed.

Functional morphology and feeding strategy of the hydrothermal-vent polychaete Archinome rosacea (family Archinomidae)

“…We present evidence that supports a different interpretation of the feeding strategy of A. rosacea. This species has morphological and dietary characteristics consistent with carnivory or scavenging, as in other shallow-water Amphinomida (Copeland and Wieman 1924;Dales 1957;Clark 1962;Marsden 1963b), and this supports the contention of Voight (2000) that it may be a predator.…”

Synergistic effects of algal overgrowth and corallivory on Caribbean reef‐building corals

“…Once corallivores are attracted to the zone of interaction, mechanisms leading to coral mortality remain to be elucidated. Gut contents of H. carunculata have been found to include coral tissue (Marsden 1963), confirming that the worm can feed on corals. Aggregative feeding behavior of predators, in particular scavengers, can cause high mortality in prey subject to even a small degree of stress and/or damage (Ramsay and Kaiser 1998) and constitutes an important mechanism driving trait-mediated indirect interactions (Werner and Peacor 2003).…”

“…C. abbreviata appears to be an obligate corallivore eating exclusively live coral (Ward 1965). In contrast, H. carunculata has been observed feeding on a variety of sessile organisms (Fauchald and Jumars 1979) and analyses of its gut contents indicated remains of corals, mollusks, polychaetes, and crinoids (Marsden 1963). Therefore, it appears as a facultative coral feeder that feeds on all kinds of food sources.…”

First record of the fireworm Hermodice carunculata (Annelida, Polychaeta) preying on colonies of the fire coral Millepora alcicornis (Cnidaria, Hydrozoa)

“…It is apparently omnivorous (Marsden 1963b), feeding on sedentary animals and algae. This fireworm is regarded as an important predator on coral reefs where it grazes upon zoanthids, anemones, gorgonids, hydrocorals, scleractinians and octocorals (Lizama & Blanquet 1975, Lewis & Crooks 1996, Souza et al 2007.…”

“…This fireworm is regarded as an important predator on coral reefs where it grazes upon zoanthids, anemones, gorgonids, hydrocorals, scleractinians and octocorals (Lizama & Blanquet 1975, Lewis & Crooks 1996, Souza et al 2007. Of particular interest is the fact that this polychaete feeds on living hermatypic corals -more specifically Porites porites and P. astreoides (Marsden 1962(Marsden , 1963b) -and on the colonial zoanthid Palythoa mammillosa (Marsden 1968). Witman (1988) and Lewis & Crooks (1996) studied this worm feeding on colonies of the calcified hydroid Millepora complanata, and such ecological relationship seems to be quite common in the Caribbean Sea.…”