A Creature Stranger than Sci-Fi – Issue #74

Hello Explorer,
Often misidentified upon first encounter, people often think these strange creatures are small snakes or a type of snail, but alas it is neither of these. They are hammerhead flatworms from the genus Bipalium. They belong to the phylum Platyhelminthes (Flatworms), this means that they have no body cavity (open space between the organs and the outer muscle and skin layers), are unsegmented, soft bodied invertebrates that lack circulatory and respiratory organs. They have no heart, veins, or lungs for that matter. They rather have flat bodies to allow oxygen and nutrients to pass through their entire bodies through means of passive diffusion. This means that instead of having blood that transports oxygen to their cells and organs, the cells and organs get oxygen directly from the air around their bodies.
The species I have encountered most recently is Bipalium vagum, the Mollusc-eating Hammerhead Worm. As their common name indicates they eat exclusively terrestrial molluscs, in other words, land living slugs and snails! They can be identified by the two dark blotches on the hammer shaped head, the dark band on the neck, and three dark stripes on their back. The middle back stripe is usually black and the two stripes on either side can be anything from light brown to almost black.

The Mollusc-eating Hammerhead Worm can track down its prey by finding and following the slime trail that is used by the mollusc to move around. When captured the mollusc will violently react, but the hammerhead worm will use its muscles as well as sticky secretions from its body to attach itself to the mollusc. Once the mollusc is overpowered the Hammerhead worm will invert its pharynx and they secrete enzymes over their prey, digesting it outside of the worm’s body. The liquified tissues of the mollusc is then sucked up by the hammerhead worm through capillary action (explain capillary action).
In 2014 it was confirmed that one of the most toxic biotoxins known to mankind is produced by two species of Bipalium. Tetrodotoxin is a neurotoxin that results in paralysis which can lead to death. Previously Tetrodotoxin was discovered in pufferfish and has been found in many other ocean living creatures, but Bipalium were the first land organisms proven to produce it and it is believed that they use the toxin to subdue prey and to protect itself against predators.
Thus, these worms are not just stranger than sci-fi, some might even say that they are truly heartless due to their extreme hunting measures and the level of overkill they have in terms of their toxicity! On the other hand, they could be a very good biological control agent if you are struggling with slugs and snails in your garden.
Personally, I say this is a marvel of Creation that is astonishing to witness once you have some background information to observe the genus for its complexity and intricacies! What other species or group of species have you come across that look strange from afar, but once you gain some knowledge of them you realize that they are a marvel of Creation?

If you would like to send me a message with your answers, feel free to do so on Instagram @abugmanslife or via email to [email protected]