Scientists solve 100-year-old mystery of lugworm’s strange poop towers that seem to defy gravity — the answer lies in ropes, cables and physics

A groundbreaking study has shed light on how lugworms masterfully create their spiral towers within tidal flats. The worms' soft faecal castings, resembling flexible ropes under gravity, play a crucial role in this process. As the worms continuously extrude their material, the mucus-coated strands twist and coiling, resulting in the characteristic spiral formations. These insights could greatly influence future engineering applications involving extruded materials.