Hammerhead Worm - Bipalium sp

Known loosely as Hammerhead Worm because of the distinctive shape of their head region, they are predators of earthworms. They easily track the earthworms by following their trails, then they secrete a sticky fluid and hold the prey in place with their muscles. Once the hammerhead worms start eating, things become even more disturbing. They first push their pharynx out of their mouths, then they cover the earthworm with the neurotoxins they secrete. This chemical, known as tetrodotoxin (which is also found in such animals as pufferfish and triggerfish), actually cause the earthworm’s body to liquefy! Hammerhead worms are the only terrestrial invertebrates with this ability. The hammerhead worm essentially sucks up the dissolved earthworm. The digestion process mostly occurs outside of the hammerhead worm’s body, since the earthworm’s flesh is already in liquid form!