Spirobranchus kraussii

Spirobranchus kraussii, the blue coral-worm, is a species of marine invertebrate in the family Serpulidae of order Sabellida. It is native to the Indian Ocean.^[1][2]

Spirobranchus kraussii
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Annelida
Clade:	Pleistoannelida
Clade:	Sedentaria
Order:	Sabellida
Family:	Serpulidae
Genus:	Spirobranchus
Species:	S. kraussii
Binomial name
Spirobranchus kraussii (Baird, 1865)

Synonyms

• Placostegus caeruleus Schmarda, 1861 (confused, subjective synonym of two other taxa)^[2]
• Placostegus cariniferus kraussii Baird, 1865 (superseded original combination)^[2]
• Placostegus latiligulatus Baird, 1865^[2]
• Placostegus ornatus articulata Mörch, 1863 (subjective synonym)^[2]
• Pomatoceros (Pomatoleios) caerulescens Augener, 1922 (subjective synonym)^[2]
• Pomatoleios caerulescens Augener, 1922 (subjective synonym)^[2]
• Pomatoleios crosslandi Pixell, 1913 (subjective synonym)^[2]
• Pomatoleios kraussii (Baird, 1865) (superseded recombination)^[2]
• Pomatoleios kraussii manilensis Pillai, 1965 (subjective synonym)^[2]

Distribution

• Indo-West Pacific^[3]
• Cape Peninsula to Mozambique^[1]
• South Africa^[3]
• Mediterranean Sea (alien)^[2]
• Gulf of Mexico (from synonym)^[2]
• Madagascar (from synonym)^[2]
• North Atlantic Ocean European waters [from synonym]^[2]
• Red Sea^[3]
• Persian Gulf^[3]
• Australia^[3]
• Japan^[3]
• India^[3]
• Hawaii^[3]

Description

The head has two rows of feathery branches and a stalked operculum with two pointed wings and a flat cap. Length about 15mm and tubes are about 2mm inside diameter.^[1]

Habitat

The blue coral-worm builds massive colonies of interwoven calcareous tubes, which can be locally abundant on moderately exposed rocky shores. It is a filter feeder.^[1]