Zombie worm ‘destroyed fossils’

A species of bone-eating worm that was believed to have evolved in conjunction with whales has been dated back to prehistoric times when it fed on the carcasses of giant marine reptiles.

Scientists found that Osedax — popularised as the “zombie worm” — originated at least 100 million years ago, and subsisted on the bones of prehistoric reptiles such as plesiosaurs and sea turtles.

The research team at Plymouth University told how they found traces of Osedax on plesiosaur fossils held at the University of Cambridge Museum.

Nicholas Higgs, a research fellow in the Marine Institute, said the discovery was important for understanding the genesis of the species and its implications for fossil records. “The exploration of the deep sea in the past decades has led to the discovery of hundreds of new species with unique adaptations to survive in extreme environments, giving rise to important questions on their origin and evolution through geological time,” said Dr Higgs.

“The unusual adaptations and striking beauty of Osedax worms encapsulate the alien nature of deep-sea life in public imagination. Our discovery shows these bone-eating worms did not co-evolve with whales, but that they also devoured the skeletons of large marine reptiles that dominated oceans in the age of the dinosaurs.

The scientists studied fossil fragments taken from a plesiosaur unearthed in Cambridge, and a sea turtle found in Burham, Kent.