ABOVE: Dongsha Atoll in the South China Sea
HU CHIAN SHIUN
More than 400 kilometers off the southwestern coast of Taiwan is the Dongsha Atoll, a nearly perfectly circular coral reef with a single bit of land, Dongsha Island (also known as Pratas Island), breaking through the ocean’s surface. Both the reef and the island boast impressive biodiversity, and the atoll and surrounding waters have been a designated marine park since 2007.
One of the creatures that calls the island home is the earthworm Pontodrilus litoralis. These little invertebrates—they can measure up to around 12 cm in length as adults, but are just 2 mm wide—are euryhaline, meaning they can tolerate a wide range of salinity conditions. They typically nestle within clumps of seagrass on the beach, although they can also burrow as far as 30 centimeters into the sand, which on this island is composed primarily of pulverized shells ...
