Mini Snake .....

hobie

any ideas what this might be .... it behaves very much like a snake .... it can swim on the surface of a pond ..... raise its head high above the ground and sway in the breeze ..... moves just like a snake ....

typically 8 inches long and a 1/16" in dia (say 1.5mm) ..... it has what looks like a black head ...... too small to identify if it has eyes (must try a magnifying glass) ......

I've seen them frequently in the garden over the years and wonder what it could be .....

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/1091/dsc00007sn7.jpg

jmkennedyie

I'm no expert but I guess it's some type of worm. I can't find any good references to Irish species on the net, but I guess there are plenty of species of worms wriggling around the countryside...free-living and, ehh, parasitic...

Maybe you might spot something on wikipedia that helps narrow the search down? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worm

hobie

You would have to see it stand up 3 or 4 inches off the ground and waving its body like an Indian charmers snake to appreciate how much it differs from a worm ..... really strange .....

Just looked through JM's links and here it is .... it's almost certainly a Nematomorpha (Class Gordioidea: Freshwater

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nematomorpha

jmkennedyie

Good stuff! Must admit though, glad I'm not a cricket or grasshopper living in your garden

hobie

Must admit though, glad I'm not a cricket or grasshopper living in your garden

I was thinking that myself ...... it's a bit of a nasty bu$$er isn't it ....