Newly discovered bristle worm named after student
Researchers at the Department of Marine Sciences have discovered a completely new bristle worm in the family Phyllodocidae. The worm, which lives in the Mediterranean, has been named “Eulalia feliciae” after a former master’s student in marine science, Felicia Ulltin.
There is a lot of talk about species disappearing, but sometimes also new ones see the light of day. The beautiful bristle worm Eulalia feliciae is such an example. In a new scientific publication, it’s presented as a completely “own” species that differs from other very similar bristle worms in the large worm genus Eulalia.
“It’s such an honour to have one of your favourite organisms named after you! I've been called ‘Worm-Felicia’ for a while now, so maybe it was about time for a ‘Felicia worm’,” says a happy and moved Felicia Ulltin.
Extreme bristle worm enthusiast
One of the researchers that discovered the new species is Arne Nygren, systematist and taxonomist at the Department of Marine Sciences. His specialty is bristle worms, more specifically he examines family trees and describes new species of worms in the family Phyllodocidae.
Discovering new species is a fun and important driving force for Arne Nygren in his research. He estimates that he has described and named about fifty new bristle worms over the years. This time a former student, Felicia Ulltin, inspired the species epithet ‘feliciae’.
“Felicia Ulltin is an extreme worm enthusiast! She has also worked together with me on several university courses and in turn enthused the students' interest in bristle worms. She is a true inspiration for future marine biology researchers,” says Arne Nygren.
Many worms look alike
Eulalia worms are what scientists call “cryptic”. By that, scientists mean that there are many species that are deceptively similar to each other: small, emerald green, and with red eyes. A bit like Chinese dragons, according to Arne Nygren.
“Eulalia worms are extremely common bristle worms, both in Scandinavian waters, in the Mediterranean, and all the way up to the Arctic. We have caught this particular worm on several occasions during expeditions in the Mediterranean, but it’s not until now that we have examined it properly,” says Arne Nygren.
DNA analysis new and valuable tool
Traditionally, species of bristle worms and other animals are determined by examining their appearance, such as body length, head shape, number of antennae, colour, and so on. Many species that are very similar have therefore been wrongly classified as one and the same. But today, researchers have access to a new and very valuable tool: DNA analysis.
“By examining how DNA is structured, differences can be found that show that it is a matter of different species. Therefore, today we know that there are at least seven different Eulalia species in Europe, and not just one as we thought before,” says Arne Nygren.
Today, Felicia Ulltin works with species identification of bristle worms and other marine benthic animals at a consulting firm in Bergen, Norway.
What is so fascinating about bristle worms?
“That they have so many different lifestyles and protrusions! In addition, they are ecologically very significant, and make up most of both the diversity and biomass of our marine soft sediments. And I can't deny that many of them are also extremely elegant!", says Felicia Ulltin.
Text: Susanne Liljenström
Translation to English: Annika Wall
The article is published in the scientific journal Organisms Diversity & Evolution. Among the authors are Arne Nygren, and Fredrik Pleijel, both researchers at Tjärnö Marine Laboratory, Department of Marine Sciences.
