Protula intestinum

Appearance

The worm's body consists of a head, a cylindrical, segmented body and a tail piece. The head consists of a prostomium (part for the mouth opening) and a peristomium (part around the mouth) and bears paired appendages (palps, antennas and cirri). The gill plume is red to orange-red in color.
Can be confused with Protula tubularia whose coloring, very variable, can also take an orange-red hue.

Distribution

North-East Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea.

Behavior

Protulas are sedentary worms living in a calcareous tube which they secrete themselves. This tube, which measures up to 15 or 20 cm in length, is welded to the substrate and straightens in its front part where the opening is located. Unlike serpules, Protulas do not have a closure for closing this tube.

Habitat

Inhabits hard substrates, both in rocks and in shells and shells, in shady areas. Found up to 20 meters deep.

Reproduction

Members of the class Polychaeta are mostly gonochoric (sexual). Mating: Females produce a pheromone attracting and signalling the males to shed sperm which in turn stimulates females to shed eggs, this behavior is known as swarming. Gametes are spawned through the metanephridia or body wall rupturing (termed as "epitoky", wherein a pelagic, reproductive individual, "epitoke", is formed from a benthic, nonreproductive individual, "atoke"). After fertilization, most eggs become planktonic; although some are retained in the worm tubes or burrowed in jelly masses attached to the tubes (egg brooders). Life Cycle: Eggs develop into trocophore larva, which later metamorph into juvenile stage (body lengthened), and later develop into adults.