The proboscis is used to capture food. Click here if you would like to see how an Annelid worm feeds . This is like pushing a finger of a glove inside out. Sipunculids dig out burrows underneath boulders which lie in mud. They can also bore burrows into soft sand-rock.
Sipunculids feed on organic matter that they extract from sand and mud.
Marine worms live under boulders of rocky ocean shores, among the holdfasts of algae, in mud, sandy mud and in sand, while others build tubes in which to shelter. The Fireworm , Eurythoe complanata, can cause quite a painful wound if you try to pick one up and the tiny , hard, spikes from the limbs stick into your fingers and break off. The Scale Worm , Lepidonotus melanogrammus, is a short. compact worm with 12 pairs of overlapping scales. The Peanut Worm , Phascolosoma noduliferum, has a flask-shaped, almost symmetrical body, which is pointed at one end. Noduliferum refers to the minute nodules all over its body which give it a rough surface.