Alkmaria romijni

Researched By	Nicola White	Data Supplied By	MarLIN
Refereed by	Dr P. M. Gilliland
Taxonomy
Scientific name	Alkmaria romijni	Common name	Tentacled lagoon worm
MCS Code	P1127	Recent Synonyms	None
Phylum	Annelida	Subphylum
Superclass		Class	Polychaeta
Subclass		Order	Terebellida
Suborder		Family	Ampharetidae
Genus	Alkmaria	Species	romijni
Subspecies
Additional Information	No text entered
Taxonomy References	Barnes, 1994, Howson & Picton, 1997
General Biology
Growth form	Tubicolous	Feeding method	Surface deposit feeder
Mobility/Movement	Burrower	Environmental position	Infaunal
Typical food types	No text entered	Habit	Burrow dwelling
Bioturbator	Insufficient information	Flexibility	High (>45 degrees)
Fragility	Fragile	Size	Very small(<1cm)
Height		Growth Rate	Insufficient information
Adult dispersal potential	100-1000m	Dependency	Insufficient information
Sociability	Solitary
Toxic/Poisonous?	No
Additional Information	Adults live within the sediment in durable mud tubes, the top of which protrude above the sediment surface. No information is available on adult growth rate. However, larval stages grow at approximately 0.15 mm/week (Cazaux, 1982).
Biology References	Cazaux, 1982, Arndt, 1989
Distribution and Habitat
Distribution in Britain & Ireland	Southern shores of the North Sea as far north as the Humber, along the English Channel and round into Pembrokeshire.
Global distribution	South from Baltic and North Sea coasts to Morocco.
Biogeographic range	Not researched	Depth range	Shallow
Migratory	Non-migratory / Resident
Distribution Additional Information	Alkmaria romijni has been recorded from 27 sites around the UK (Gilliland & Sanderson, 2000; Thomas & Thorp, 1994). The majority of these are estuaries and the remainder lagoons. The species may be under-recorded due to it's small size. Alkmaria romijni is known from salinities of 5 to 48 ppt, but it's preferred range is thought to be 5 to 20 ppt (Paul Gilliland pers. comm.)
Substratum preferences	Mud, Muddy sand, Muddy gravel	Physiographic preferences	Isolated saline water (Lagoon), Ria / Voe, Estuary
Biological zone	Sublittoral Fringe, Lower Eulittoral	Wave exposure	Sheltered, Very Sheltered, Extremely Sheltered, Ultra Sheltered
Tidal stream strength/Water flow	Weak (<1 kn)	Salinity	Variable (18-40 psu), Low (<18 psu)
Habitat Additional Information	None entered
AMBI Group (Borja et al., 2000)	III
Distribution References	Barnes, 1994, Arndt, 1989, Gilliland & Sanderson, 2000, Thomas & Thorp, 1994
Reproduction/Life History
Reproductive type	Gonochoristic	Developmental mechanism	Lecithotrophic
Reproductive Season	Insufficient information	Reproductive Location	Adult burrow
Reproductive frequency	Insufficient information	Regeneration potential	No
Life span	Insufficient information	Age at reproductive maturity	Insufficient information
Generation time	Insufficient information	Fecundity	Insufficient information
Egg/propagule size	Insufficient information	Fertilization type	Insufficient information
Larvae/Juveniles Larval/Juvenile dispersal potential 10-100m Larval settlement period Not relevant Duration of larval stage Not relevant
Additional Information	Larval development lasts 3 months (Cazaux, 1982). Larvae reside within the tubes of the female for up to the first twelve days. They then become free-living on the surface of the sediment and develop their own tube at about 20 days
Reproduction References	Cazaux, 1982