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Peanut Worm
Common name for a species of unsegmented marine worm, with the
scientific designation Sipunculus nudus. The worm is commonly found
in temperate or tropical waters, hiding in sand burrows on the
seabed of sandy shores at subtidal zones, from where it at night
extends its tentacles to feed by filtering plant and animal tissue
from the seawater. Peanut
Worms occur to a depth of around 900
metres and generally grow
to a length of around 15 centimetres, though larger individuals are
sometimes found. In Vietnam, Peanut Worms are collected and sold for
human consumption, known as sa sung (sá sùng), and in southern
China,
the worms are considered a delicacy, in Fujian called tǔ sǔn (土笋),
which literally means ‘earth
bamboo
shoot’, yet in other areas, such as Beihai, the worms are referred
to as shā chóng (沙虫), which means ‘sandworm’. Before consumption,
the worms must be cleaned of their entrails.
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