A new study explains how California blackworms can twist and curl around each other by the thousands, forming tightly wound balls and then untangling just as quickly. Credits : Image: Harry Tuazon
A new study explains how California blackworms can twist and curl around each other by the thousands, forming tightly wound balls and then untangling just as quickly. Credits : Image: Harry Tuazon California blackworms tangle themselves up by the thousands, then separate in a split second. Their trick may inspire the design of self-detangling materials and fibers. As anyone who has ever unwound a string of holiday lights or detangled a lock of snarled hair knows, undoing a knot of fibers takes a lot longer than tangling it up in the first place. This is not so for a wily species of West Coast worm. Found in marshes, ponds, and other shallow waters, California blackworms ( Lumbriculus variegatus ) twist and curl around each other by the thousands, forming tightly wound balls over several minutes. In the face of a predator or other perceived threat, the worms can instantly untangle, disassembling the jiggly jumble in milliseconds.
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