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Thousands of ‘wiggly penis fish’ wash up on California Beach

The phallic 10-inch marine creatures usually live in burrows under the sand

Kate Ng
Friday 13 December 2019 11:00 GMT
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The fat innkeeper worm, also known as the penis fish, has a distinctively phallic appearance
The fat innkeeper worm, also known as the penis fish, has a distinctively phallic appearance

Beachgoers in California were treated to the sight of thousands of 10-inch fat innkeeper worms, which look like ‘pink sausages’, stranded on the shore after a storm.

The fat innkeeper worms, informally known as ‘penis fish’, washed up on Drake’s Beach along the coast of northern California.

According to nature magazine Bay Nature, the non-segmented marine worms are commonly found along the west coast of North America and usually live in burrows under the sand.

A recent storm washed away several feet of sand from the beach, leaving the distinctively phallic worms exposed.

The burrows they live in are U-shaped and often used as shelter by other marine creatures such as pea crabs, shrimps, and goby fish – which is how the fat innkeeper worm got its name.

 
 
 
 
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SHOOK 😳 Thousands of these marine worms—called fat innkeeper worms, or “penis fish”—were found on Drake’s Beach last week! These phallic organisms are quite common along the West coast of North America, but they spend their whole lives in U-shaped burrows under the sand, so few beachgoers are aware of their existence. ⛈🌊 A recent storm in Northern California brought strong waves that washed away several feet of sand from the intertidal zone, leaving all these fat innkeeper worms exposed on the surface. 🏖 Next time you go to the beach, just think about the hundreds of 10-inch, pink sausages wiggling around just a few feet under the sand. 🙃 . . Get the full story in our new #AsktheNaturalist with @california_natural_history via link in bio! (📸: Beach photo courtesy David Ford; Worm photo by Kate Montana via iNaturalist)

A post shared by Bay Nature Magazine (@baynaturemagazine) on

The magnanimous worm also provides food for its tenants, allowing them to feed on leftover plankton it traps in a net of slime.

The worms are preyed on by otters, seagulls, sharks, and also humans.

In South Korea, fat innkeeper worms are known as ‘gaebul’ and are a delicacy typically eaten raw and said to have aphrodisiac effects.

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