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Animal profile

Ribbon Worm

Cerebratulus lacteus

AnoplaIntertidal and subtidal sand and mud flats along temperate coasts

Field profile

Cerebratulus lacteus is a large, flattened nemertean that burrows in coastal sediment and swims with undulations of its ribbon-like body. It preys on other invertebrates and is sometimes dug up by clam harvesters. Like all nemerteans it hunts with an eversible proboscis.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2024-05-20

Ribbon Worm

A ribbon worm hunts with a launched proboscis

Nemerteans strike prey with an eversible proboscis housed in its own fluid-filled chamber above the digestive tract. Squeezing that chamber turns the proboscis inside out and shoots it forward, entirely independent of the mouth.

Read with evidence →

Ribbon Worm | Daily Animal Facts