AN-480 FEATHER DUSTER WORM, Sabella melanostigma

An aquarium favorite, this handsome little polychaete lives in a brown tube drilled through dead shell and limestone rock. (See purple worms in photo, click to enlarge.) They quickly contract their maroon, light-sensitive and intricately branched tentacles at the approach of a shadow. If attacked by a fish, Sabella will autotomize its feather crown of tentacles and regenerate another. Size:4-6 cm.