Prionospio heterobranchia Moore, 1907

Prionospio heterobranchia Moore, 1907: 195 —197, plate 15, figs 1–6.— Amoureux, 1985: 102. Prionospio (Minuspio) heterobranchia .— Maciolek, 1985: 341 –343, fig. 5.— Gobin, 1990: 43.

Type locality. Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA, on soft sediment.

Type material. Holotype (ANSP 850).

Records. USA: off Pierce Inlet, Florida (Maciolek 1985). Guadaloupe (Gillet 1987, Amoureux 1985). Trinidad and Tobago: Oropuche (Gobin 1990).

Remarks. This species is easily distinguished by having five pairs of branchiae, three of which have digitiform pinnules, and by the extremely large posterior pair of prostomial eyes. Foster (1971a) proposed the synonymy of Prionospio heterobranchia texana Hartman, 1951, and P. h. newportensis Reish, 1959, with P. heterobranchia, and this was followed by Maciolek (1985). The record of P. heterobranchia in the Grand Caribbean is questionable, requiring comparison with the type material.