Twisting and turning atop the muddy ooze, the acorn worm (class Enteropneusta) is an unassuming worm-like animal that has a surprising connection to Earth’s climate. Named for their acorn-shaped front end, enteropneusts are actually more closely related to humans than to worms. They have a rudimentary nerve cord that is similar to ours, and they breathe oxygen using structures similar to a fish's gills. A constant rain of particles connects the ocean's surface to deep-sea communities far below.

Your newest #WormCrushWednesday—the deep-sea worm, Allapasus aurantiacus. ⁠ ⁠ Acorn worms are known to biologists as “enteropneusts” (pronounced ‘entero-noosts’—the ‘p’ is silent). They belong to a small group of animals known as the hemichordates, which are closely related to the chordates (animals with backbones). ⁠ ⁠ Acorn worms have no bones, no eyes, and no brain. Their bodies have three main parts—a long, worm-like trunk, a wide collar that surrounds a mouth, and a large proboscis that fil

On this #WormWednesday, meet the rosy acorn worm whose scientific name is #Yoda purpurata...any guesses as to why? Big "ears" it has. And it reminds us of someone, it does. Hrmmm. This acorn worm was seen during the fourth dive of the second #Okeanos Voyage to the Ridge 2022 expedition. These acorn worms are deposit feeders, consuming sediment and digesting organic matter from it, filling their intestines and living a trace of fecal matter (or…poop) behind them. For more from the expedition, vis