Ribbon Worm - Tubulanus annulatus

Characteristics:

The vivid brick-red, orange-red or brownish red ribbon worms can be confused with two similar species, T. superbus and T. nothus. T. superbus has four white, longitudinal stripes in in stead of three. T. nothus has a white head with two black spots.

T. annulatus has approximately 50 transverse, white bands. It may reach a length of almost one meter. The width is usually less than 3-4 mm.

Habitat:

It can be found on a variety of substrates. It may be encountered in the subtidal zone, but is more frequent in depths from 10-40 meters.

Distribution:

It is widespread on the northern hemisphere, in the Atlantic as well as the Pacific Ocean. It is registered in the Mediterranean and along all coasts of Europe.