Photo of Asterophilia sp. taken by Ken Tucker at Lembeh, Indonesia (verified by Leslie Harris)
Scientific Classification:
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumAnnelida
ClassPolychaeta
OrderAciculata
FamilyPolynoidae
SpeciesAsterophilia sp.

Information

Comment from expert, Leslie Harris: Ken is right, it's a scaleworm in the family Polynoidae, genus Asterophilia. The scales are translucent so the edges don't show which makes the big papillae look as if they're directly on the body. There are two described species both of which are commensal on sea stars. The differences between the 2 are microscopic so I can't say which species this belongs to.

Locality

Indonesia
Lembeh
Nov