Timarete punctata
A rarely seen cirratulid polychaete buried in the Seagrass Meadow sediment that spreads long yellow tentacles banded with black across the substrate to collect organic particles, far less common than the red Spaghetti Worm.
Hair Worm is miniBIOTA's name for Timarete punctata, a cirratulid polychaete in the Seagrass Meadow whose long yellow tentacles are banded with black dots or stripes. It is rarely seen, unlike the abundant red Spaghetti Worm. Josue identified it on October 15, 2026 from video filmed June 6, 2026. No introduction date or population count is on record.
Family Cirratulidae is cosmopolitan in soft-sediment marine and estuarine habitats worldwide. In Florida, cirratulid polychaetes are common members of seagrass bed and estuarine infaunal communities, living buried in sandy and muddy substrate with their cirri extending across the sediment surface. Timarete punctata is reported from tropical and subtropical coastal waters, including the Gulf of Mexico.
Cirratulid polychaetes live partially or fully buried in soft sediment, typically in sandy to muddy substrate with organic enrichment. The body is buried in the substrate while long, thread-like cirri (which function simultaneously as gills and food-collection organs) extend outward across the sediment surface. In miniBIOTA's Seagrass Meadow it has been filmed with its yellow tentacles extended over the sediment among the seagrass.
Cirratulid polychaetes are deposit feeders and surface collectors. The cirri extending across the sediment surface collect fine organic particles, bacteria, and detritus. Food is transported along the cirri to the mouth by ciliary action. Some species also ingest bulk sediment, digesting the organic fraction and passing mineral grains. This feeding mode complements Southern Lugworm in the benthic infaunal deposit-feeding guild.
Cirratulids reproduce sexually via broadcast spawning; some species also reproduce asexually through fragmentation of the body. No reproductive observations have been made in miniBIOTA.
Marine to estuarine, tolerating a range of salinities and low-oxygen conditions common in soft sediment environments. Specific tolerance ranges for miniBIOTA conditions have not been measured.
Hair Worm is a deposit feeder and sediment bioturbator in the Seagrass Meadow, occupying a similar ecological niche to Southern Lugworm. Its cirri extend across the sediment surface in a fine network of organic-particle collectors, functioning as both a feeding structure and a gas exchange surface. Dense cirratulid populations can visibly carpet sediment surfaces with their extended cirri, a phenomenon common in organically rich estuarine sediment.
No introduction date, source, or method is on record. Cirratulid polychaetes are common hitchhikers in sandy substrate, live rock, and seagrass rhizome material. Arrival with an early saltwater introduction is the most probable pathway.
Filmed in the Seagrass Meadow on June 6, 2026 and described by Josue as rarely captured. No introduction record or population count.
Deposit feeder and surface collector; cirri collect fine organic particles and bacteria across the sediment surface. Ecological function overlaps with Southern Lugworm in the benthic deposit-feeding guild. No feeding observed in miniBIOTA.
Marine to estuarine polychaete tolerating a range of salinities and low-oxygen sediment conditions common in soft organic-rich substrate. Specific tolerance ranges for miniBIOTA conditions not measured.
No reproductive observations in miniBIOTA.
Deposit feeder and sediment bioturbator contributing to organic matter processing in the Seagrass Meadow substrate. Ecological niche overlaps with Southern Lugworm; complements the benthic infaunal deposit-feeding guild.
Sediment nutrient cycling
Follow this species across the habitats where it currently appears in the miniBIOTA biosphere.
