NOBANIS - Marine invasive species in Nordic waters - Fact Sheet

NOBANIS - Marine invasive species in Nordic waters - Fact Sheet 

Neanthes succinea 

Author of this species fact sheet: Kathe R. Jensen, Zoological Museum, Natural History Museum of Denmark, 

Universitetsparken 15, 2100 København Ø, Denmark. Phone: +45 353-21083, E-mail: krjensen@snm.ku.dk 

Bibliographical reference – how to cite this fact sheet: 

Jensen, Kathe R. (2010): NOBANIS – Invasive Alien Species Fact Sheet – Neanthes succinea – From: Identification 

key to marine invasive species in Nordic waters – NOBANIS www.nobanis.org, Date of access x/x/201x. 

Species description 

Species name 

Neanthes succinea (Leuckart, 1847) – clam worm; pile worm 

Synonyms 

Alitta succinea; Nereis succinea; Nectoneanthes alatopalpis Wu et al., 1985; Nectoneanthes 

oxypoda Imajima, 1972; Nereis (Neanthes) australis Treadwell, 1923; Nereis (Neanthes) saltoni 

Hartman, 1936; Nereis alatopalpis Wesenberg-Lund, 1949; Neanthes perrieri Saint-Joseph, 1898; 

Nereis belawanensis Pflugfelder, 1933; Nereis acutifolia Ehlers, 1901; Nereis glandulosa Ehlers, 

1908; Nereis limbata Ehlers, 1868; Nereis reibischi Heinen, 1911 

Common names 

Pileworm, clam worm (U.K., USA); 

Identification 

This is a rather large polychaete worm; it may be almost 20 cm long. Macroscopically it is similar 

to other nereid species occurring in Nordic waters, e.g. N. virens (M. Sars, 1835), Nereis pelagica 

Linnaeus, 1758 and N. diversicolor (=Hediste d.) (O.F. Müller, 1776), i.e. it has one pair of 

antennae, one pair of palps and 4 pairs of tentacles. Microscopically it has a distinct pattern of 

paragnaths (small chitinous spines on the eversible pharynx), and also the lobes of the parapodia are 

distinct for the different species. The body in N. succinea is divided into two regions, the posterior 

part having much enlarged lobes on the parapodia. The head region is dark brownish and the 

posterior part is greenish yellow. During swarming the color is pale reddish.

Neanthes succinea, full body. Photo by Kathe Rose Jensen 

Neanthes succinea, close-up. Photo by Kathe Rose Jensen

Neanthes succinea (from Kirkegaard 1992) 

A: Anterior end with everted proboscis showing jaws and paragnaths. Arrow points to group of 

paragnaths that are specific for this species. 

B: Parapodium from anterior end. 

C: Parapodium from posterior end with enlarged dorsal lobe. 

The three common species also have different reproductive patterns (see below). 

http://www.invasivespecies.net/database/species/ecology.asp?si=1068&fr=1&sts=&lang=EN, 

http://adl.brs.gov.au/marinepests/index.cfm?fa=main.spDetailsDB&sp=6000005300, 

http://www.padil.gov.au/viewPestDiagnosticImages.aspx?id=547 

For Neanthes virens (=Alitta v.; =Nereis v.), King ragworm, see 

http://species-identification.org/species.php?species_group=macrobenthos_polychaeta&id=722 

For Neanthes pelagica (=Nereis p.), see 

http://species-identification.org/species.php?species_group=macrobenthos_polychaeta&id=720 

For Hediste diversicolor (=Nereis d.), Common ragworm, see 

http://species-identification.org/species.php?species_group=macrobenthos_polychaeta&id=715, 

http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesfullreview.php?speciesID=3470

Distribution 

Native distribution 

This is a cryptogenic species. It was originally described from Helgoland in 1847 (Bakken & 

Wilson, 2005), but it took almost 100 years before it was recorded in other places. However, Wolff 

(1973) claims that it may have been present in the Netherlands since the 18th century, and there are 

museum records from 1899. 

Introduced distribution 

This species is found almost worldwide, but has been considered native of the North(east) Atlantic 

and then introduced to other regions. It was first recorded from Danish waters in 1953, but later a 

few specimens, which had been collected in 1949, were found in the Zoological Museum, 

Copenhagen (Muus, 1967). It was first found in Sweden on the west coast in 1940 (Smith, 1963). It 

is often associated with mussel beds (Muus, 1967; Rasmussen, 1973). 

On the west coast of the USA N. succinea lives in a land-locked salt-lake, Salton Sea, below sea 

level (Kuhl & Oglesby, 1979). 

The species recorded as Nereis succinea in the Caspian Sea has turned out to be Hediste 

diversicolor (=Nereis d.) (Muus, 1967). 

Neanthes succinea occurs in Iranean Gulf (as Nereis alatopalpis) and in southeastern Australia, 

where it was first recorded in 1978 (Hewitt et al., 2004). 

Ecology 

N. succinea is a deposit-feeder preferentially inhabiting soft bottoms from intertidal to about 20 m 

depth (Wolff, 1973). It may also be a voracious predator or scavenger, feeding on amphipods or 

other small invertebrates (Rasmussen, 1973; Hardege et al., 1990). It burrows in the sediment and 

may form semi-permanent U-shaped tubes or complex gallery burrows, depending on the sediment 

(Rasmussen, 1973; Kirkegaard, 1992). It may occur in densities of 600 individuals per m² 

(Rasmussen, 1973). It is highly tolerant for kinds of pollution and extremely euryhaline (Kuhl & 

Oglesby, 1979) and is able to take up sediment-associated pollutants through the gut (Ahrens et al., 

2001). It is often associated with mussel and oyster beds. It is an excellent food for many fish 

species (Carpelan & Linsley, 1961; Neuhoff, 1979), and is also used for bait by sport fishermen. 

During swarming they are often prey of sea birds from above and jellyfish from below (Rasmussen, 

1973). 

Reproduction 

In N. succinea both sexes show swarming behavior in connection with reproduction. Swarming 

takes place in the summer at temperatures above 13° C, and usually during the night at new moon 

(Kirkegaard, 1992), though it occurred in bright sunshine in the Isefjord (Rasmussen, 1973). The 

the Salton Sea swarming does not seem to follow a monthly cycle (Carpelan & Linsley, 1972). In 

N. virens only the males form “heteronereis” or epitoke body forms with enlanrged parapodial lobes 

on part of the body (Bass & Brafield, 1972). H. diversicolor does not change in body form in 

connection with reproduction (Kirkegaard, 1992). In all three species the worms die soon after 

spawning (Muus, 1967; Kirkegaard, 1992). Spawning period for N. succinea is June to September, 

for N. virens April to May, and for H. diversicolor June to August (Neuhoff, 1979). Gonads mature 

while the animals are still in their tubes while they wait for the adequate signal to initiate swarming

(Hardege et al., 1990). The body is divided into 3 regions during the swarming period; only the 

middle section is used for swimming. Males are bright red in the middle section and females 

greenish brown (Rasmussen, 1973). Many studies have been carried out on the role of pheromones 

in the reproduction of this species (Zeeck et al., 1990; Ram et al., 1999, 2008; Watson et al., 2003; 

Hardege et al., 2004). Swarming is controlled by temperature and lunar phase (Hardege et al., 

1990). 

Impacts 

As it is considered native in many European countries, impacts have not been identified except for 

Australia and the west coast of the USA. It has a high potential for bioturbation and the impacts 

associated with this, e.g. oxygenation in deeper layers, bioavailability of pollutants buried in the 

sediment, increased activity of meiofauna and micro-organisms. It is able to bioaccumulate a 

number of pollutants and may be used as a biomonitor. Competition with other nereid species has 

been suggested as H. diversicolor seems to become rare where N. succinea becomes common 

(Smith, 1963). 

Nereis succinea and the other nereid species are commonly used as bait. 

References 

Ahrens, M.J., Hertz, J., Lamoureux, E.M., Lopez, G.R., McElroy, A.E. and Brownawell, B.J. 2001. The effect of body 

size on digestive chemistry and absorption efficiencies of food and sediment-bound organic contaminants in Nereis 

succinea (Polychaeta). Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 263: 185-209. 

Bakken, T. and Wilson, R.S. 2005. Phylogeny of nereidids (Polychaeta, Nereididae) with paragnaths. Zoologica Scripta 

34: 507-547. 

Bartoli, M., Nizzoli, D., Welsh, D.T. and Viaroli, P. 2000. Short-term influence of recolonisation by the polychaete 

worm Nereis succinea on oxygen and nitrogen fluxes and denitrification: a microcosm simulation. Hydrobiologia 431: 

165-174. 

Bass, N.R. and Brafield, A.E. 1972. The life-cycle of the polychaete Nereis virens. Journal of the Marine Biological 

Association of the United Kingdom 52: 701-726. 

Briggs, K.B., Tenore, K.R. and Hanson, R.B. 1979. The rôle of microfauna in detrital utilization by the polychaete, 

Nereis succinea (Frey and Leuckart). Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 36: 225-234. 

Carpelan, L.H. and Linsley, R.H. 1961. The spawning of Neanthes succinea in the Salton Sea. Ecology 42(1): 189-190. 

Hardege, J.D., Bartels-Hardege, H., Müller, C.T. and Beckmann, M. 2004. Peptide pheromones in female Nereis 

succinea. Peptides 25: 1517-1522. 

Hardege, J.D., Bartels-Hardege, H.D., Zeeck, E. and Grimm, F.T. 1990. Induction of swarming of Nereis succinea. 

Marine Biology 104: 291-295. 

Horst, R. 1922. Een heteronereis-vorm van Nereis succinea Leuck. Zoologische Mededeelingen 7: 40. 

Kirkegaard, J.B. 1992. Havbørsteorme I. Errantia. Danmarks Fauna 83: 1-416. 

Kristensen, E. 1983a. Ventilation and oxygen uptake by three species of Nereis (Annelida: Polychaeta). I. Effects of

hypoxia. Marine Ecology Progress Series 12: 289-297. 

Kristensen, E. 1983b. Ventilation and oxygen uptake by three species of Nereis (Annelida: Polychaeta). II. Effects of 

temperature and salinity changes. Marine Ecology Progress Series 12: 299-306. 

Kuhl, D.L. and Oglesby, L.C. 1979. Reproduction and survival of the pileworm Nereis succinea in higher Salton Sea 

salinities. Biological Bulletin 157: 153-165. 

Müller, C.T., Priesnitz, F.M. and Beckmann, M. 2005. Pheromonal communication in nereids and the likely 

intervention by petroleum derived pollutants. Integrative and Comparative Biology 45: 189-193. 

Muus, B.J. 1967. The fauna of Danish estuaries and lagoons. Meddelelser fra Danmarks Fiskeri- og Havundersøgelser 

5: 1-316. 

Neuhoff, H.-G. 1979. Effects of seasonally varying factors on a Nereis succinea population (Polychaeta, Annelida). 

Marine Ecology Progress Series 1: 263-268. 

NIMPIS (National Introduced Marine Pest Information System) 2010. Alitta succinea (pileworm). Fact sheet available 

at http://adl.brs.gov.au/marinepests/index.cfm?fa=main.spDetailsDB&sp=6000005300 (accessed on 16 April 2010). 

Pardo, E.V. and Dauer, D.M. 2003. Particle size selection in individuals from epifaunal versus infaunal populations of 

the nereidid polychaete Neanthes succinea (Polychaeta: Nereididae). Hydrobiologia 496: 355-360. 

Ram, J.L., Fei, X., Danaher, S.M., Lu, S., Breithaupt, T. and Hardege, J.D. 2008. Finding females: pheromone-guided 

reproductive tracking behavior by male Nereis succinea in the marine environment. Journal of Experimental Biology 

211: 757-765. 

Ram, J.L., Müller, C.T., Beckmann, M. and Hardege, J.D. 1999. The spawning pheromone cysteine-glutathione 

disulfide (‘nereithione’) arouses a multicomponent nuptial behavior and electrophysiological activity in Nereis succinea 

males. FASEB Journal 13: 945-952. 

Rasmussen, E. 1973. Systematics and ecology of the Isefjord marine fauna (Denmark). Ophelia 11: 1-507. 

Smith, R.I. 1963. On the occurrence of Nereis (Neanthes) succinea at the Kristineberg Zoological Station, Sweden, and 

its recent northwards spread. Arkiv för Zoologi 15: 437-441. 

Swan, B.K., Watts, J.M., Reifel, K.M. and Hurlbert, S.H. 2007. Role of the polychaete Neanthes succinea in 

phosphorus regeneration from sediments in the Salton Sea, California. Hydrobiologia 576: 111-125. 

Wang, W.-X-. Stupakoff, I. and Fisher, N.S. 1999. Bioavailability of dissolved and sediment-bound metals to a marine 

deposit-feeding polychaete. Marine Ecology Progress Series 178: 281-293. 

Watson, G.J., Bentley, M.G., Gaudron, S.M. and Hardege, J.D. 2003. The role of chemical signals in the spawning 

induction of polychaete worms and other marine invertebrates. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 

294: 169-187. 

Wolff, W.J. 1973. The estuary as a habitat. An analysis of data on the soft-bottom macrofauna of the estuarine area of 

the rivers Rhine, Meuse, and Scheldt. Zoologische Verhandelingen 126: 3-242. 

Zeeck, E., ardege, J. and Bartels-Hardege, H. 1990. Sex pheromones and reproductive isolation in two nereid species, 

Nereis succinea and Platynereis dumerilii. Marine Ecology Progress Series 67: 183-188.

NOBANIS - Marine invasive species in Nordic waters - Fact Sheet

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