This species is found in Cobscook Bay, the Gulf of Maine and the north west Atlantic Ocean at a depth of up to 200 metres.

Spawning takes place in June to August, peaking in July, especially around the periods of new and full moon and the subsequent increase in tidal flows.

The eggs and sperm develop and float freely in the body cavity of the worm but by some little understood process, only the ripe products are released.

[3] The tiny pea crab Pinnixa chaetopterana is sometimes found living as a commensal inside the tube behind the worm.

[8] The ornate worm is often found in marine environments also inhabited by Notomastus lobatus (Polychaeta) and Saccoglossus kowalewskyi (Hemichordata), which produce and contaminate sediments with bromophenols and bromopyrroles.