Meet the Elvis worm, a deep-sea creature with iridescent scales, dazzles with its shimmering armour
It’s easy to see how these shimmering creatures earned their name — their sparkling exteriors closely resemble the sequinned jumpsuits worn by the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll himself.
If you’re anything like me, you probably can’t help falling in love with Elvis worms – one of the prettiest tiny creatures in the sea – and their stunning, sparkly costumes, says Helen Scales.
What are Elvis worms and why do they glitter?
Peinaleopolynoe elvisi belong to a genus known as hungry scale worms, and were discovered recently in the abyss, on the remains of a dead whale. But why evolve an eye-catching appearance when you live in the darkest depths? Those shiny scales may help protect the worms, whose lives involve a little less conversation and rather more fighting.
Hungry scale worms get embroiled in rambunctious scuffles – perhaps an animal instinct to defend territories or to compete for the burning love of another worm.
During bouts, pairs of worms bounce furiously on the spot, then throw punches with a long proboscis, and take bites out of each other before going their separate ways, no doubt all shook up.
Main image: Elvis worm by Hatch AS, Liew H, Hourdez S, Rouse GW (2020) Hungry scale worms: Phylogenetics of Peinaleopolynoe (Polynoidae, Annelida), with four new species. ZooKeys 932: 27-74. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.932.48532, CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons