Strange sand worm while pumping nippers

[Dave_]

I was pumping nippers and squirt worms the other day at Lake Macquarie and out come the strangest worm I've ever seen. It was long like a beach worm but all white with a pinkish head. It didn't really have legs along the body. It looked disgusting and I wouldn't touch it and when my mate used it for bait he said it was that slimy he couldn't get it off his hands.

Sorry I don't have pics but hopefully someone else had seen one. We named it the "embryo".

[rockfisherman]

Could it have been a sick beach worm, or this this was definetly it's own species?

Harry

If it's to good to be true, it usually is...

[Dave_]

Well I've never got a beach worm in a pump before and this was thicker and didn't have the little legs all down the length of it's body. Definitely a different species, almost completely white with pinkish head and definitely still alive.

Neither of us had ever seen one before and both of us have been pumping nippers for years. I can't find anything that looks like it on Google. Fair dinkum, my mate couldn't get it's slime off his hands but the fish loved it. I should have taken a photo. Bugger!

[Yowie]

Don't know what species it is, but I have pumped out an occasional one over the years in Port Hacking. Somewhere around the 20 to 25 cm mark, a light coloured body like you stated, a bit slimey, and a pinkish head section. Never used them for bait, and never picked them up. Sometimes the body stretches out a bit as if it appears to be breaking up. Just leave them for the fish to eat.

[Dave_]

Don't know what species it is, but I have pumped out an occasional one over the years in Port Hacking. Somewhere around the 20 to 25 cm mark, a light coloured body like you stated, a bit slimey, and a pinkish head section. Never used them for bait, and never picked them up. Sometimes the body stretches out a bit as if it appears to be breaking up. Just leave them for the fish to eat.

That's exactly the one Yowie. Like I said, I wasn't touching it but my mate insisted. They do however, work as bait.

[Ryder]

Ribbon worm?

[Dave_]

Yeah that's it! I wonder how common they are and if they're regarded as good bait

[Ryder]

They are a type of Nemertea, they occur throughout the world. Not sure how common they are here, but they are known to be hard to catch.

Some species are sold as bait in the US and South Africa.

Some species are toxic having a similar poison to pufferfish .

Research has shown they are eaten by some fish and avoided by others, sometimes they are eaten then violently rejected.

As a bait the head is the firmest part the rest of the body quite soft. The tail often gets bitten off so a 2 hook snell is the go. 1 hook in the head one in the tail.

I don't know if this one is toxic, next time get your mate to hold it while you bait it up.