Ophryotrocha puerilis | |
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Ophryotrocha puerilis at bottom right | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Annelida |
Clade: | Pleistoannelida |
Subclass: | Errantia |
Order: | Eunicida |
Family: | Dorvilleidae |
Genus: | Ophryotrocha |
Species: | O. puerilis
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Binomial name | |
Ophryotrocha puerilis Claparède & Mecznikow, 1869 [1]
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Synonyms[1] | |
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Ophryotrocha puerilis is a species of marine polychaete worms in the order Eunicida. It is native to the northern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea and is the type species of the genus Ophryotrocha.[1]
Ophryotrocha puerilis starts life as a male but later changes sex to female. Under certain circumstances it can change back to a male as a result of environmental cues; it switches sex if two female stages are put together, or if the tail of a female stage is removed, but it remains female if kept in isolation.[2]