Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are

enchytraeid Enchytraeidae is a family of microdrile oligochaeta, oligochaetes. They resemble small earthworms and include both terrestrial species known as potworms that live in highly organic Ecoregion#Terrestrial, terrestrial environments, as well as some ...

annelids The annelids (Annelida , from Latin ', "little ring"), also known as the segmented worms, are a large phylum, with over 22,000 extant species including ragworms, earthworms, and leeches. The species exist in and have adapted to various ecolo ...

of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the ...

ine habitats, but the best-known members of the genus are found in glacial ice. They include the only annelid worms known to spend their entire lives in glacial ice, and some of the few

metazoan Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage in ...

s to complete their entire life cycle at conditions below . They were discovered in a wide range of environments, which include level snowfields, steep avalanche cones, crevasse walls, glacial rivers and pools, and hard glacier ice. These organisms are unique in that they can simply move between tightly packed ice crystals. They utilize setae, which are small bristles found on the outside of their bodies, to grip the ice and pull themselves along. Ice Worm against Fingernail

The genus contains 77

, including the North American glacier ice worm ('' Mesenchytraeus solifugus'') and the Yosemite snow worm ('' Mesenchytraeus gelidus''). Ice worms eat snow algae and bacteria. They live at zero degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit), but if temperatures dip even slightly below that, according to a

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant uni ...

researcher, the worms die.

Species

The genus contains 77

. They are the following: *'' Mesenchytraeus affinis'' Michaelsen, 1901 *'' Mesenchytraeus altus'' Welch, 1917 *'' Mesenchytraeus americanus'' Bell, 1942 *'' Mesenchytraeus anisodiverticulus'' Shen, Chen & Xie, 2012 *''

Mesenchytraeus antaeus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Rota & Brinkhurst, 2000 *''

Mesenchytraeus arcticus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Bell, 1962 *'' Mesenchytraeus argentatus'' Nurminen, 1973b *''

Mesenchytraeus armatus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' (Levinsen, 1884) :*''

Mesenchytraeus armatus armatus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' (Levinsen, 1884) :*''

Mesenchytraeus armatus kananaskis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Dash, 1970 *''

Mesenchytraeus asiaticus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus atriaphorus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Altman, 1936 *''

Mesenchytraeus beringensis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus beumeri Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' (Michaelsen, 1886b) *''

Mesenchytraeus bungei Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Michaelsen, 1901 *'' Mesenchytraeus cejkai'' Cernosvitov, 1937d *''

Mesenchytraeus celticus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Southern, 1909 *''

Mesenchytraeus chaunus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Piper, MacLean & Christensen, 1982 *'' Mesenchytraeus chromophorus'' Altman, 1936 *''

Mesenchytraeus crenobius Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Timm, 1994 *''

Mesenchytraeus diplobulbosus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Bell, 1949 *'' Mesenchytraeus diverticulatus'' Piper, MacLean & Christensen, 1982 *'' Mesenchytraeus eastwoodi'' Eisen, 1904 *'' Mesenchytraeus eltoni'' Stephenson, 1925 *'' Mesenchytraeus falciformis'' Eisen, 1878 *'' Mesenchytraeus flavidus'' Michaelsen, 1887 *''

Mesenchytraeus flavus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' (Levinsen, 1884) *''

Mesenchytraeus fontinalis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 :*'' Mesenchytraeus fontinalis fontinalis'' Eisen, 1904 :*''

Mesenchytraeus fontinalis gracilis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus franciscanus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus fuscus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 :*'' Mesenchytraeus fuscus fuscus'' Eisen, 1904 :*'' Mesenchytraeus fuscus inermis'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus gaudens Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Cognetti, 1903a *'' Mesenchytraeus gelidus'' Welch, 1916 *''

Mesenchytraeus gigachaetus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Xie, 2012 *''

Mesenchytraeus glandulosus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' (Levinsen, 1884) *''

Mesenchytraeus grandis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus grebnitzkyi Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Michaelsen, 1901 *''

Mesenchytraeus groenlandicus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Nielsen & Christensen, 1959 *'' Mesenchytraeus hamiltoni'' Healy, 1996b *'' Mesenchytraeus harrimani'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus hydrius Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of t ...

'' Welch, 1919a *'' Mesenchytraeus johanseni'' Welch, 1919b *''

Mesenchytraeus kincaidi Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *'' Mesenchytraeus kontrimavichusi'' Piper, MacLean & Christensen, 1982 *''

Mesenchytraeus konyamensis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Michaelsen, 1916 *'' Mesenchytraeus kuehnelti'' Dózsa-Farkas, 1991a *''

Mesenchytraeus kuril Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Healy & Timm, 2000 *'' Mesenchytraeus lusitanicus'' Collado, Martínez-Ansemil, and Giani, 1993 *''

Mesenchytraeus macnabi Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Bell, 1942 *'' Mesenchytraeus maculatus'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus magnus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Altman, 1936 *'' Mesenchytraeus melanocephalus'' Christensen & Dózsa-Farkas, 1999 *''

Mesenchytraeus minimus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Altman, 1936 *'' Mesenchytraeus mirabilis'' Eisen, 1878 *''

Mesenchytraeus monochaetus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Bretscher, 1900 *''

Mesenchytraeus monodiverticulus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Shen, Chen & Xie, 2012 *'' Mesenchytraeus monothecatus'' Bell, 1945 *'' Mesenchytraeus multispinus'' (Grube, 1851) *''

Mesenchytraeus nanus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus obscurus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus ogloblini Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Černosvitov, 1928b *''

Mesenchytraeus orcae Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus pedatus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus pelicensis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Issel, 1905c *'' Mesenchytraeus penicillus'' Eisen, 1904 *'' Mesenchytraeus primaevus'' Eisen, 1878 *''

Mesenchytraeus rhithralis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of t ...

'' Healy & Fend, 2002 *''

Mesenchytraeus sanguineus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Nielsen & Christensen, 1959 *''

Mesenchytraeus setchelli Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *'' Mesenchytraeus solifugus'' (Emery, 1898) :*''

Mesenchytraeus solifugus solifugus ''Mesenchytraeus solifugus'', commonly called an ice worm, is a species of oligochaete worm that inhabits coastal glaciers in northwestern North America. ''M. solifugus'' is dark brown and grows to about 15 mm long and 0.5 mm wide. I ...

'' (Emery, 1898) :*''

Mesenchytraeus solifugus rainierensis ''Mesenchytraeus solifugus'', commonly called an ice worm, is a species of Oligochaeta, oligochaete worm that inhabits coastal glaciers in northwestern North America. ''M. solifugus'' is dark brown and grows to about 15 mm long and 0.5&nb ...

'' Welch, 1916 *''

Mesenchytraeus straminicolus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Rota, 1995 *''

Mesenchytraeus sveni Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Christensen & Dózsa-Farkas, 1999 *''

Mesenchytraeus svetae Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Piper, MacLean & Christensen, 1982 *'' Mesenchytraeus tetrapodus'' Timm, 1978 *''

Mesenchytraeus torbeni Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Christensen & Dózsa-Farkas, 1999 *''

Mesenchytraeus tundrus Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Piper, MacLean & Christensen, 1982 *''

Mesenchytraeus unalaskae Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus variabilis Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Cejka, 1914 *'' Mesenchytraeus vegae'' Eisen, 1904 *''

Mesenchytraeus viivi Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of th ...

'' Timm, 1978 *''

Mesenchytraeus vshivkovae Ice worms (also written as ice-worms or iceworms) are enchytraeid annelids of the genus ''Mesenchytraeus''. The majority of the species in the genus are abundant in gravel beds or the banks of riverine habitats, but the best-known members of t ...

'' Timm, 1994 ''Mesenchytraeus franzi'' is a junior synonym of ''

Cognettia clarae ''Cognettia'' is a genus of annelids belonging to the family Enchytraeidae. The genus has almost cosmopolitan distribution. Species: * ''Cognettia alsoae'' (Martinsson, Klinth & Erséus, 2018) * ''Cognettia baekrokdamensis ''Cognettia'' is ...

''. ''Mesenchytraeus megachaetae'' Shen, Chen & Xie, 2011 has been renamed ''Mesenchytraeus gigachaetus'' Xie, 2012 due to the previous name being preoccupied by ''Mesenchytraeus megachaetae'' Bretscher, 1901, a junior synonym of ''

.''

References

External links

Seattle Times Article on Iceworms
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ice Worm Enchytraeidae

Species

See also

References

External links