Creature 325: Enteroxenos

Who needs a body?

Enteroxenos is a parasite which specializes on the digestive tract of sea cucumbers.

You may be looking at it and thinking that it is some kind of roundworm, but it's actually a snail. The juveniles look like normal snails but after they infect their host they start to lose all their unnecessary body parts like the shell, digestive tract,  sensory organs etc...

Their reproductive track is the only part that actually grows. After they infect their host. They absorb nutrients through their skin so they don't need a mouth. The females are much larger than the males and after a while the male just infects the female body to save time trying to find mates.

Distribution:
Enteroxenos can be found in the North Atlantic.

Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Order: Caenogastropoda
Family: Eulimidae
Genus: Enteroxenos

Image Links:

http://dailyparasite.blogspot.com.au/2010/01/january-24-enteroxenos-oestergreni.html

Creature 314: Cancellaria cooperii

Blood sucking snail

Cancellaria cooperii is a marine snail which is commonly called the torpedo snail or Cooper's nutmeg snail.

This marine snail has acquired the taste for blood, although they only really feed off torpedo ray blood, so you are safe.  They can smell torpedo rays from up to 24 meters away and when the torpedo ray cones in contact with the sea floor these little snails attach on. They drill into thei host with their razor sharp teeth and suck away.

Distribution:
The torpedo snail can be found in the East Pacific.

Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Order: Caenogastropoda
Family Cancellaridae
Genus: Cancellaria
Species: Cancellaria cooperii

Image Links:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cancellaria_cooperii
http://www.metridium.com/monterey/other/nutmeg.html

Creature 275: Cyphoma gibbosum

Colorful snail with a boring shell

Cyphoma gibbosum is a brightly colored sea snail.

It has been given the common name flamingo tongue snail, although I can't imagine why. I don't think it looks anything like a flamingo's tongue.The interesting thing about this snail is that while it may look like it has a pretty shell, it actually has quite a boring plain white shell. The patterns are actually the color of the snails mantle which has grown over the shell. Its purpose is to provide a large surface area for the snail to absorb Oxygen from the water.

Distribution:
The flamingo tongue snail is known from the Caribbean sea and some coastal areas of Eastern South America.

Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Order: Caenogastropoda
Family: Ovulidae
Genus: Cyphoma
Species: Cyphoma  gibbosum

Image Links:

http://www.rsmas.miami.edu/outreach/underwater-photography/2010-winners/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flamingo_tongue_snail