Lepidonotus squamatus

The prostomium has two lobes and bears several pairs of antennae, a pair of palps and two pairs of eyes. The dorsal surface of the body, which has uniform width, is completely concealed by two rows of overlapping scales, resembling fish scales. These scales are modified cirri and are supported on short stalks. They are covered in tubercles of varying sizes, and have a fringe of papillae. This worm has 26 segments and grows to a length of about ; it is some shade of grey, drab brown or yellow, often being covered with mud. ==Distribution and habitat==

Lepidonotus squamatus occurs in Western Europe, including the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the Kattegat, the Öresund Strait and the western Baltic Sea. It is also present on the eastern seaboard of North America from Labrador southward to New Jersey and on the western seaboard from Alaska to California. It occurs in the littoral zone and the sublittoral zone at depths down to about . Its habitat is typically beneath stones or among tangled growth. ==Ecology==

Scale worms play a role on the seabed similar to that of isopods (pill bugs or woodlice) on land. They are carnivorous, feeding on crabs, starfish, gastropod molluscs and any other small invertebrate they come across. ==References==