coiled mass (Erect Worm-shell); the latter occurs in deep water off southeast Florida.
Genus Aletes Carpenter 1857
Plate 20e
Forrester Island, Alaska, to Peru.
Grows in large, twisted masses. The shelly tubes are circular, 1⁄4 to 1⁄2 inch in diameter. Sculpture of numerous, minutely scaled or rough, longitudinal cords. Color gray to pinkish gray. The last part of the shell which usually stands erect for 1⁄2 inch is smoothish. A very common, colonial species found in masses on wharf pilings or attached to rocks below the low-water line.
Genus Spiroglyphus Daudin 1800
Plate 20d
Forrester Island, Alaska, to San Diego, California.
A small worm-tube mollusk found adhering to rocks and the shells of abalones in a tightly wound, flat spiral. The last whorl may grow up on top of the previous whorls and be erect for 1⁄4 of an inch. Aperture circular, about 1⁄8 inch in diameter. Shell solid, with 2 large, scaled cords which give a somewhat squarish cross-section to the whole shell. Hollow scales and fimbriations present elsewhere. Color cream to purplish gray. Operculum horny, multispiral and brown. Moderately common.
There is a very similar species reported from the West Indies (S. annulatus Daudin).
Family Siliquariidae
Genus Vermicularia Lamarck 1799
Plate 21c; figure 22i
Southeast Florida and the West Indies.
Evenly and closely spiraled for about 1⁄4 inch, then becoming random and drawn out in its worm-like coiling. Shell rather thin, colored a translucent to opaque amber, orange-brown or yellowish. Early whorls dark, smooth, except for 1 (rarely 2) smooth, spiral cord on the middle of the whorl. Subsequent whorls with 2 major cords which soon lose their prominence. Smaller threads present, especially on the base of the shell. This is
