''Lamellibrachia'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of tube worms related to the giant tube worm, ''

Riftia pachyptila ''Riftia pachyptila'', commonly known as the giant tube worm and less commonly known as the Giant beardworm, is a marine invertebrate in the phylum Annelida (formerly grouped in phylum Pogonophora and Vestimentifera) related to tube worms co ...

''. They live at deep-sea

cold seep A cold seep (sometimes called a cold vent) is an area of the ocean floor where hydrogen sulfide, methane and other hydrocarbon-rich fluid seepage occurs, often in the form of a brine pool. ''Cold'' does not mean that the temperature of the see ...

s where

hydrocarbon In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and hydrophobic, and their odors are usually weak or ex ...

s (oil and methane) leak out of the seafloor, and are entirely reliant on internal, sulfide-oxidizing

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...

symbionts Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasit ...

for their nutrition. The symbionts, gammaproteobacteria, require sulfide and inorganic carbon (carbon dioxide). The tube worms extract dissolved oxygen and hydrogen sulfide from the sea water with the crown of plumes. Species living near seeps can also obtain sulfide through their "roots", posterior extensions of their body and tube. Several sorts of

hemoglobin Hemoglobin (haemoglobin BrE) (from the Greek word αἷμα, ''haîma'' 'blood' + Latin ''globus'' 'ball, sphere' + ''-in'') (), abbreviated Hb or Hgb, is the iron-containing oxygen-transport metalloprotein present in red blood cells (erythrocyte ...

are present in the blood and coelomic fluid to bind to the different components and transport them to the symbionts. ''L. luymesi'' provides the bacteria with

hydrogen sulfide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is poisonous, corrosive, and flammable, with trace amounts in ambient atmosphere having a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The unde ...

and

oxygen Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements as wel ...

by taking them up from the environment and binding them to a specialized

molecule. Unlike the tube worms that live at

hydrothermal vent A hydrothermal vent is a fissure on the seabed from which geothermally heated water discharges. They are commonly found near volcanically active places, areas where tectonic plates are moving apart at mid-ocean ridges, ocean basins, and hotspot ...

s, ''L. luymesi'' uses a posterior extension of its body called the root to take up hydrogen sulfide from the seep sediments. ''L. luymesi'' may also help fuel the generation of sulfide by excreting sulfate through its root into the sediments below the aggregations. The most well-known seeps where ''L. luymesi'' lives are in the northern

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

from 500 to 800 m depth. This tube worm can reach lengths over 3 m (10 ft), and grows very slowly, with individuals living to be over 250 years old. It forms a biodiverse habitat by creating large aggregations of hundreds to thousands of individuals. Living in these aggregations are over 100 different species of animals, many of which are found only at these depths. While most species of vestimentiferan tubeworms live in deep waters below the

photic zone The photic zone, euphotic zone, epipelagic zone, or sunlight zone is the uppermost layer of a body of water that receives sunlight, allowing phytoplankton to perform photosynthesis. It undergoes a series of physical, chemical, and biological proc ...

, ''L. satsuma'' was discovered in

Kagoshima Bay also known as Kinkō Bay, is a deep inlet of the East China Sea on the coast of Japan.''Merriam Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Third Edition'', p. 562. Kagoshima Bay is on the south coast of the island of Kyūshū. The port city of Kagoshi ...

Kagoshima , abbreviated to , is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Located at the southwestern tip of the island of Kyushu, Kagoshima is the largest city in the prefecture by some margin. It has been nicknamed the "Naples of the Eastern wor ...

at a depth of only 82 m, the shallowest depth record for a vestimentiferan.

Species

The following species are included in this genus: * '' Lamellibrachia anaximandri'' Southward, Andersen & Hourdez, 2011 * '' Lamellibrachia barhami'' Webb, 1969 * '' Lamellibrachia columna'' Southward, 1991 * '' Lamellibrachia donwalshi'' McCowin &

Rouse Rouse may refer to: Places * Rouse, California, United States, a census-designated place * Rouse, Wisconsin, United States, an unincorporated community * Rouses Point, New York, United States, a village * Rouse Islands, Antarctica * Cape Rouse, An ...

, 2018 * '' Lamellibrachia juni'' Miura &

Kojima Kojima may refer to: Surname * Kojima (surname) Places * Kōjima, an island known for wild monkeys in Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan * Kojima, an uninhabited island belonging to the Tokara Islands, in the southern part of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japa ...

, 2006 * '' Lamellibrachia luymesi'' van der Land & Nørrevang, 1975 * ''

Lamellibrachia satsuma ''Lamellibrachia satsuma'' (also known as Satsuma tubeworm or Satsumahaorimushi or ) was discovered near a hydrothermal vent in Kagoshima Bay, Kagoshima at the depth of only the shallowest depth record for a vestimentiferan. Its symbiotic sul ...

'' Miura, 1997 * '' Lamellibrachia victori'' Mañe-Garzon & Montero, 1985

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1937429 Sabellida Chemosynthetic symbiosis Polychaete genera