Biodiversity & Conservation

A bristleworm - Eteone longa

A bristleworm

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Distribution map

Eteone longa recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

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Eteone longa is not listed under any importance categories.

Taxonomy icon Taxonomy Taxon English term
Phylum Annelida Segmented worms e.g. ragworms, tubeworms & fanworms
Class Polychaeta Bristleworms, e.g. ragworms, scaleworms, paddleworms, fanworms and tubeworms
Authority (Fabricius, 1780)
Recent synonyms None
Map icon Recorded Distribution in Britain and Ireland Occurs around most of the British coast.
Habitat information icon Habitat information Eteone longa is found in muddy sand or mud, intertidally and offshore, to a depth of at least 120 m.
Text page icon Description Eteone longa is a long, thin, many segmented worm with a flattened body up to 6 cm long and 1 mm in width. It is transparent yellowish-white in colour and is very active. There are 4 short antennae on the head and it has a smooth eversible proboscis. The parapodia are flattened and leaf-like in shape, forming a fringe down each side of the worm that give it the name 'paddleworm'.
Identifying features
  • A long, thin, very active polychaete up to 6 cm long, about 1 mm in width, with about 200 segments.
  • Body flattened and transparent yellowish-white in colour.
  • Head, or prostomium, with 2 pairs of short antennae and 2 small, dark red eyes.
  • Eversible, smooth proboscis that is flared towards its opening.
  • Behind the head the dorsal cirri of each parapod are flattened, projecting out from the body to form a fringe down each side of the body.
Additional information icon Additional information Eteone longa can be distinguished from Eteone flava, which is morphologically similar but rose-red to orange in colour.

This review can be cited as follows:

Penny Avant 2007. Eteone longa. A bristleworm. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 25/05/2013]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=3295>