Biological Characteristics of the Polychaete Ficopomatus enigmaticus (Fauvel, 1923) from Mass Settlements in the Coastal Water Area of the Kerch Strait (Black Sea)

Is Ficopomatus enigmaticus (Annelida: Serpulidae) Becoming a Nuisance in Galveston Bay, Texas?

“…Between 2019 and 2022, it was regularly detected on settlement plates deployed seasonally in GB [8]. The worms were present at mesohaline stations (6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12) the northern and central sites of GB and ~18 ppt in West Bay), but their numbers remained low [8]. The first reports of F. enigmaticus in the northern Gulf of Mexico emerged in the early 1950s in reference to Corpus Christi Bay [9] and Aransas Bay [10].…”

“…Ficopomatus enigmaticus is known as as a worldwide invader in many temperate to subtropical coastal areas with brackish conditions [6]. Individual worms are generally 10-15 mm long, but worms as large as 39 mm have been reported [11]. Like other serpulid worms [7], F. enigmaticus secretes and inhabits calcareous tubes that exceed its body length by a factor of 2-3 and are 1-2 mm wide, possessing a flared anterior end [11].…”

“…Individual worms are generally 10-15 mm long, but worms as large as 39 mm have been reported [11]. Like other serpulid worms [7], F. enigmaticus secretes and inhabits calcareous tubes that exceed its body length by a factor of 2-3 and are 1-2 mm wide, possessing a flared anterior end [11]. Individual tubes can cluster together in reef-like structures that can be up to 7 m in diameter and grow to a height of 0.5 m [12].…”

“…Although the species is often referred to as the "Australian tubeworm", Australia might not have been its geographic origin [15]. Massive invasions have occurred in the Mediterranean and Black Seas [11,16,17], the Baltic Sea [18], the North American west coast [19,20], the southwest Atlantic [21], New Zealand [22], and South Africa [23]. Ficopomatus enigmaticus has been reported in numerous other locations but does not always engage in reef building.…”