#forgot to prep a post

[bethanythebogwitch]

There are some animals that, if they didn't exist and somebody made them up, we would say they had an overactive imagination. The bobbit worm is one of those creatures, the closest we have to a real-life Mongolian death worm. So for this Wet Beast Wednesday, I'll tell you about just how weird it is.

(image: a rare full-body shot of a bobbit worm)

Before we start, I want to go on a brief tangent. What exactly is a worm? Well it turns out that like fish, worms aren't real. At least they aren't from a taxonomist's perspective. In common parlance, we refer to any long, skinny, and (usually) legless invertebrate as a worm. In taxonomy, that is far too broad of a category, especially as lots of animal lineages would have started out as something a lot like a worm and you can't stop being what your evolutionary ancestors were. Instead, taxonomists classify worms into multiple distinct phyla that independently converged onto the worm body plan, including the platyhelminths, nematodes, nemerteans, and annelids. The bobbit worm (Eunice aphroditos) is an annelid, which are known for their multiple body segments. More specifically, it is a polychaete or bristle worm, which are known for having a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia on each body segment, which have chitinous bristles called chaetae growing from them. There is some debate that the bobbit worm may actually be a species complex, which is when multiple related species are mistakenly classified as a single species.

(image: a bobbit worm found in an aquarium)

Bobbit worms are the largest of the polychaetes, with the largest known specimen being 299 cm (9.81 ft) long. They are also rather skinny, usually reaching no more than 2.5 cm (1 in) wide. Bobbit worms have a wide range of coloration, ranging from brown to black and often with a rainbow of other colors going down their bodies. You might not notice this, however, because they spend most of their time burrowing under the sand in their Indo-Pacific coral reef habitats. This provides protection from predators and is important to their hunting strategy. Bobbit worms will stick their heads out of the sand and wait while their 5 antennae use chemosensitive and light-sensing cells to detect when fish pass by. When a fish comes too close, the worm strikes. They use a set of retractable jaws that are razor sharp and come together like scissors to bite the fish. This bit is strong enough to cut small fish in half. It is rumored that this is the source of their name, from the Lorena Bobbit case. I will not elaborate further, google it if you don't know. Those fish that are not killed immediately will find themselves bleeding out and paralyzed from venom injected through the jaws as they are dragged into the worm's burrow to be eaten. There are some reports that the wom's chaetae are also venomous and that handling them barehanded can cause permenent numbness, but this does not appear to be the scientific consensus. The worms will also feed on seaweed and other algae, making them omnivorous.

(gif: a bobbit worm catching a fish)

The borrows made by bobbit worms are dug out of the sediment and coated with mucus. The worm uses its chaetae to move in and out of the burrow. The mucus if filled with nutrients that bacteria, particularly sulfate-reducing bacteria, absolutely love. This allows iron sulfides to accumulate in the mucus. When exposed to oxygen in the water, usually at the opening of the burrow, the sulfides will become iron hydroxides. These help reinforce the burrow's opening. Bobbit worms rarely leave their burrows and will retreat at the first sign of danger, making it very hard to spot them in the wild. Several fossilized burrows have been found, one dating to 20 million years ago. Another burrow of a similar animal, possibly an ancient relative of the bobbits, was found dating to 400 millions years ago.

(image: a bobbit worm head with jaws extended)

Bobbit worms reproduce externally. At night, a female will emerge from her burrow and release pheromones that attract males. She will then release her eggs into the water. The males will follow by releasing sperm, allowing for fertilizations. The majority of larvae will die before reaching adulthood. There are rumors that females withh bite off the male's genitals to feed to her young, but this is not true. Bobbit worms can also reproduce asexually by splitting. When handles, a bobbit worm can split itself into multiple sections, each of which can grow into another identical worm. This is a common adaptation in polychaetes as it allows them to survive if a part of them is eaten.

(image: a bobbit worm just sitting there, menacingly)

Bobbit worms have become a nuisance species in aquariums. They are usually introduced as tiny larvae clinging to rocks brought in for decoration or shelter. Once in an aquarium, the worms can grow rapidly and will eat any fish in the tank. Removing them can be very difficult due to their size, regenerative abilities, and reclusive nature. One famous case that introduced a lot of the internet to the worms was that of the Newquay aquarium in England. Aquarium staff were confused when a lot of the fish were vanishing from one tank and the coral was damaged. They tried laying traps, but the intruder ate the fishhooks they used and could bite through 20 lb fishing line. Finally, they lured it out with food, finding a 4 foot long bobbit worm that they named Barry. Barry became a hit online and was moved to his own tank. There apparently were plans to put him on exhibit, but I can't find confirmation that this ever happened. Given that this happened in 2009 and the bobbit worm lifespan is 3-5 years, I am sorry to tell you that Barry has passed away. RIP, king.

(image: Barry after being removed from the tank. His drab color is thought to be the result of poor nutrition)

Because of how reclusive they are, bobbit worms are an understudied species. Attempts to raise them in laboratories have mostly failed, so there is a lot we don't know about their reproduction, development, and behavior. We also don't know if they need any conservation efforts.

How many times in this series am I going to be able to use cards from this series? (image: the bobbit worm card from Weird n' Wild Creatures)

[lotus-pear]

last post before i enter the medieval torture apparatus (ap exam week)

[cl0wnhaus]

guilty gear babies are born

[bulgasari-seo]

happy 127 day <3

[tears-of-xion]

Have some Chiyos to make your day a little brighter!!

-

Please do not use or re-post my artwork without my permission. Thank you!   (reblogs, however, are welcome and appreciated)

I do not own Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun, nor it’s characters. All rights to their owners.

[redninjaoutfit]

Pinky when Derby is 5 minutes late to their date

[dailyhatchetfield]

day 101 - dungeons and dragons

[marinsawakening]

In case anyone was wondering what happens if you try to stop Sakon from robbing the old lady with arrows: he blows up.

[maythedreadwolftakeyou]

i know all month ive been chewing on the walls bc Veilgaurd was still So Far Away but now that its right there. actually oh god i need more time i have so much shit to do before i am Absorbed Forever

[goingferalapparently]

"Forever is also... always talking about a clock? ... ... ... We've got that in common."

[lixenn]

should probably prepare for my job interview

should send in two more applications

should fold my laundry that has been sitting in the basket for ages

but

tired OTL

[chuyankhr]

( O FORGOT ABOUT MY DRAFTS THAT I NEED TO FINISH (rp ask) HOLY FUCK i will queue everything 4 morning yay [insert cirrus img] )

edit: i learned something new today, im a big fat liar.

[fl4tlines]

May Death Darken Your Door ┆ Too Late @whumpthisway ┆ May Curses Prompt 15

「✦」 OCs: Chloe Lévesque ⅋ Kay Edwards 「✧」 Content: Arrest ┆ Handcuffs ┆ Law Enforcement ┆ Talk of Murder 「✦」 Word Count: 1,566 「✧」 Relevant Links: Masterlist ┆ .𖥔˚ ♫˚ 𖥔. ⛧ ‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿⛧ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ❝ You feel the glass start to crack; // Sailing on a ship in the bottle; // Water's leaking through the holes in the bottom; // Flying flags of shops that have long since; // Sat at the floor of the sea, but in defense; // You set sail alone, there is no crew. ❞ ⛧ ‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿⛧

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ « previous

He jerked his head up when the door opened and a woman stepped inside, a stack of case files under one arm.

A stack. Not just one. A stack of all of the worst things Kay had ever done. A paper trail that proved it.

“Mr. Aeon Edwards?” she asked, putting the files on the table. “My name’s Chloe Lévesque, I’m with Blue Lyre Law.”

“Yeah – uh – that’s right,” Kay half stood up to greet her. Then aborted the movement. “I know you.”

“You do?” Chloe asked as she sat down.

“Yeah – he – uh – my dad mentioned you worked on my case before. A while back – but it wasn’t like this. I’m sorry – you’re the only attorney I know so…” Kay trailed off. Wrung his hands. “I haven’t – this isn’t something I’ve done before.”

“No, I remember you. Petty theft and underage drinking in 2010? Then arson the year afterwards?”

“Yeah,” Kay smiled faintly. “You got me off and got my record wiped.”

“That wasn’t me, I was still an admin intern.”

“And I don’t think this is going to be as easy as that was,” he mumbled, gaze shifting to the pile of files on the desk. “You’re not winning this case.”

“You seem certain of that, can I ask why?”

“I’m giving a full confession. To everything they’re accusing me of.”

“The evidence in some of these cases is extremely circumstantial.”

“I – uh – haven’t really seen them. They gave me a long list of charges, but I don’t know the – uh –” he searched for the right wording. “The grounds of the warrants.”

“We can go through all of that first, if you’d like?

“Yeah…”

“Okay. So, Mr. Edwards –”

“Kay,” he corrected.

“Kay. The main charges against you are six of first degree murder and three of kidnapping. That’s already a hefty list, without getting into misdemeanor level crimes and additional charges. Are you telling me that you committed all of those crimes as a lone participant and wish to confess to everything within these files, without even reading them?”

“I – maybe?”

“Maybe isn’t a yes.”

“It’s not,” he agreed. “But I deserve to do the time.”

“I’ll admit, I haven’t read all of these case files, but I’ve looked over them all. Why don’t you lead this? Tell me where you want to start with everything?”

“But – but I took part in all of these,” he gestured towards the files. “Why are you asking me where I want to start?”

“That’s the Marshals’ jobs. Or the police. Or the FBI. Wherever your case lands. My job is to listen to you and get your side, then to help you get the best deal you can.”

“But I killed two people!” Kay raised his voice. Just slightly. Just enough.

“That’s strange, because I have the files for six murder victims here.”

Kay slouched forward and put his head in his hands, giving his head a quick shake before he spoke downwards. Towards the metal surface.

“No – I – not like that. I – I was there. They – that many people might not have died if I wasn’t there.”

“So someone else was in the room with you?”

“I’ll confess to all of the murders.”

“Kay. Look at me. If you can give me a name, you might get far much more leniency. I can help with that.”

“I don’t deserve leniency.”

“Did you kill those six people?”

“Yes.”

“Out of those six, how many times was someone else present in the room?”

“All of them.”

“How many died as a direct result of injuries inflicted by you?”

“All six.”

“How many died as a result of you deliberately trying to end their lives?”

“Two.”

“Let’s start there, then. Do you mind telling me about one of those?”

“Can… Do you think we can start with less? I – I don’t know if –”

“That’s fine. Why don’t you tell me where we’re starting?”

“There was one. About a year ago. That one – he made me help.”

A pause invited a question.

“Who is ‘he’?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Okay. That’s fine.”

“A year ago was the first time I touched anyone. I – I didn’t want to. From what I can remember, he just told me where to meet him. And a time – and I did.”

Kay fidgeted with the cuffs and paused. Taking just a moment to sift through his thoughts.

“M– He incapacitated the guy – the alarm was broken…” he paused once more as Chloe sorted through the files in front of her and picked one out. “He was just having fun. I guess? Taunting the guy like usual. And he gave me a knife. He – he’d never done that before.”

Kay shook his head sharply. As if trying to clear the memory. Yet, he continued his story regardless. It wouldn’t be the only story he had to recount, nor the last time he had to recall this one.

“He told me to have my own fun, or something. I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t tell him that. I remember he was asking me about the arteries. Which ones I might hit. It was like a twisted biology class.”

“It sounds bad,” Chloe agreed. “How far did you go?”

“One cut. Five or six inches. Medial and diagonally, going distal. Superficial.” Kay reverted back to his clinical approach. “The guy – he was begging me to stop. I couldn’t listen to him. I – I didn’t feel guilty. But he was begging. I gave the knife back after that. He had me keep hold of the guy while he slit his throat. Then drilled me on the – on the anatomical reason behind his death. Had me clean myself up and we left. I – I got home and apparently he had some clean up guys come in after us.”

“Do you remember anything else about that night?”

“He landed an elbow right in my ribs. I was hiding the bruises from Paris for weeks.”

“Who’s Paris?”

“My – uh – he’s my ex-boyfriend. But – but you can’t bring him into this. You can’t give the Marshals his name. I – I don’t want him brought into this. Please,” Kay spoke quickly. “I just – he won’t cope. I will give them everything they need. Just – please.”

“Kay, everything you say is covered by attorney-client privilege,” Chloe reassured him. “I can’t promise nobody will speak to him, but I can try.”

“What about a term? I – I don’t talk unless they leave him alone.”

“We could try that.”

“You don’t think it will work.”

“I don’t,” Chloe shook her head. “I think they want more than your confession.”

“They want – they want the guy.”

“The ringleader,” she nodded. “The guy that you keep mentioning.”

“I – no. No. I can’t.”

“Not even if they offer leniency?”

“I – I don’t deserve it. And I can’t. They’ll go after Paris. I’ll take the extra time.”

“It’s a lot of extra time,” Chloe shook her head again. “It’s the difference between you getting out of prison and dying behind bars.”

Kay shrugged and descended into silence. Gaze on the cuffs once again.

“Would you like me to get those taken off?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Kay mumbled. “I should just – can you get an agent in here? I – Can I just get all of this over with?”

“I wouldn’t recommend it. You need some kind of strategy or they’ll pin everything they can on you.”

“I mean… Does it matter?”

“It matters to the victims’ families. They deserve the truth,” Chloe leant forward slightly. “Do you agree with that?”

“So – so I just confess to what I did? And they’re happy? I get all of this over with.”

“They’ll want names. People you were with.”

“I can’t. I mean – I want to. Everyone deserves the closure. I’m too late to fix it.”

“But, what you can do is give them closure.”

Kay gritted his teeth and sat back in the chair. Hands on the table. Wrung together. White knuckle.

“Do I have to talk to them? Can – can’t I just write a confession? Talk about it afterwards. Because I’ll forget parts and – and I want to tell the truth.”

“I can talk to them, I think they might go for it. You will have to talk to them eventually, though.”

“I know – I know that – I just – they need the truth.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why didn’t you put all of this together before you turned yourself in?”

“I didn’t know I would – I – I must have driven past this place three times yesterday. I just didn’t think I could do it,” Kay shrugged and met Chloe’s eyes, just briefly. “I figured it would just… end when it ended. Maybe that they’d just. Just shoot me. You know? Get it all over with. I’d take the fall for – for everything.”

“I understand that. Thank you for sharing. How do you feel about waiting in here for five minutes, and I will go and talk to an agent about that written confession?”

“Can – can you speak to them here? I don’t – I don’t want to talk to them. But I want to hear the conversation. Is that okay?”

“That’s fine, Kay. Give me a couple of minutes.”

“Thank you. I – I really appreciate this.”

“Don’t worry about it. Five minutes and I’ll be back with someone, is that okay?”

And Kay just nodded. He had all the time in the world.

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[turnedpalefromlackofsun]

[nerdgirlnarrates]

Got yelled at today for telling a patient I needed to double check if they were getting a colonoscopy. I never promise a scope before we’ve rounded with the attending, because occasionally they’ll change their mind or something will come up, and I just don’t know enough to always predict when that will happen. And, more importantly, I’m not the one doing the scope. Anyway, the patient took me saying I wasn’t sure to mean that the team had changed their mind. No amount of reassurance or explaining helped. They immediately started shouting at me that I better not have made them do all this prep for nothing and they were gonna be really pissed if they didn’t get their scope. I get why they were mad, and I get why this in particular upset them, but it sucks getting yelled at when you didn’t do anything. If I promise someone a scope and for some reason they don’t get one, I get yelled at. If I say I can’t make promises because I don’t make the call, I get yelled at. You can’t win.

[dogicrimsonofficial]

24 Gposes of December - Day 19, Daris Kore

"Ah, the untainted aether of nature, one of the best sensations in existence..."