The osedax are a genus of whalebone-eating siboglinids (deep sea worms), first discovered in Monterey Bay, California, in June 2004. They have no stomachs or mouths and digest whale fat and oils through bacteria. They have colorful feathery plumes that act as gills, and roots that absorb their nutrition. Between 50 and 100 microscopic dwarf males live inside the females. Although all the males never developed past their larval stage, they contain large amounts of sperm.
Osedax is latin for "bone-eating". The two species discovered within this genus are called rubiplumus and frankpressi. The worms were discovered living in a decaying gray whale in the Monterey Canyon, at a depth of 2,800 m (9,100 feet) using the submarine ROV Tiburon.
External links
it:Osedax
