Erinaceusyllis hartmannschroederae, Guillermo San Martin, 2005

Guillermo San Martin, 2005, Exogoninae (Polychaeta: Syllidae) from Australia With the Description of a New Genus and Twenty-two New Species, Records of the Australian Museum 57, pp. 39-152 : 82-83

Erinaceusyllis hartmannschroederae n.sp.

Figs. 38A–I, 39A–F

Sphaerosyllis erinaceus .–not Claparède, 1863; Hartmann-Schröder, 1982: 69; 1983: 134; 1984: 22; 1985: 70; 1986: 43; 1989: 28; 1991: 39.

Material examined. AUSTRALIA: NEW SOUTH WALES. HOLOTYPE: AM W26447, 100 m north west of Julian Rocks, Byron Bay, 28°36.8'S 153°37.8'E, shell and gravel, 15 m, E.L. Albertson, R.T. et al., 3 Mar 1992. PARATYPES: 36 specimens, AM W26448, 100 m north west of Julian Rocks, Byron Bay, 28°36.8'S 153°37.8'E, shell and gravel, 15 m, E.L. Albertson et al., 3 Mar 1992. QUEENSLAND. 1 specimen, AM W26565, Halifax Bay, north of Townsville, 19°10'S 146°38'E, 5 m, Queensland Nickel Pty Ltd, July 1977. 1 specimen,AM W26569, Halifax Bay, north of Townsville, 19°10'S 146°38'E, 5 m, Queensland Nickel Pty Ltd, July 1977. 1 specimen, AM W26571, Halifax Bay, north of Townsville, 19°10'S 146°44'E, 5 m, Queensland Nickel Pty Ltd, July 1977. 2 specimens, and 4 specimens on SEM stub, AM W26935, Hinchinbrook Channel, 18°20'S 146°4'E, tidal flats (mud & sand), S. Dittmann, 14 Oct 1989. VICTORIA. 1 specimen, MV F87430, Geelong Arm of Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, 38°09.3'S 144°42.7'E, sand & seagrass, 3 m depth, 11 June 1971. TASMANIA. 42 specimens, AM W27670, north end of beach, Parsons Cove, Freycinet National Park, 42°08.6'S 148°16.9'E, clean gravelly sand, intertidal, 0 m, N.W. Riser, 24 Jan 1986. WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 1 specimen, AM W27645, north end of beach, Bundegi Reef, Exmouth Gulf, 21°49'S 114°11'E, rocky rubble, brown algae with epiphytes, sediment, 2 m, H.E. Stoddart, 4 Jan 1984.

Description. Body small, slender, up to 3 mm long, 0.23 mm wide, 30 chaetigers, with scattered, short papillae on dorsum (Figs. 38A, 39A–D ), slightly longer laterally, also on parapodia and cirri. Prostomium oval, slightly wider than long; 4 large eyes in trapezoidal arrangement, nearly in line, and 2 anterior eyespots; antennae with bulbous bases and short tips; median antenna shorter than combined length of prostomium and palps, inserted slightly anterior to posterior eyes; lateral antennae shorter than median antenna, inserted on anterior margin, slightly posterior and lateral to eyespots. Palps shorter than prostomium, fused along their length. Peristomium forming a trilobed hood, covering dorsally the posterior margin of prostomium (Figs. 38A, 39D ); tentacular cirri similar to antennae but slightly smaller. Nuchal organs small, densely ciliated, protected by an anterior lip ( Fig. 39E ). Dorsal cirri similar to antennae, longer than tentacular cirri, with bulbous bases and short tips, absent on chaetiger 2 (Figs. 38A, 39D ), elongate in midbody and posterior parapodia (Figs. 38B, 39C ). Parapodia rectangular to conical, with two small, distal papillae. Compound chaetae heterogomph, shafts apparently smooth (Fig. 38E,G) but provided with fine subdistal spines ( Fig. 39F ); blades short, falcate, unidentate, all similar in length, about 13–10 µm on midbody; margin of blades provided with long, slender spines on 2–3 most superior compound chaetae, remaining blades smooth (Figs. 38E,G, 39F ); anterior parapodia each with 6–7 compound chaetae, diminishing in number progressively posteriorly to 5 on each posterior parapodia. Dorsal simple chaetae from anterior parapodia, usually from chaetiger 1, unidentate, provided with short marginal spines (Fig. 38C) or smooth (Fig. 38F). Ventral simple chaetae slender, smooth, unidentate (Fig. 38H), on posterior parapodia.Acicula solitary, acuminate (Fig. 38D,I). Pharynx through 4 segments; pharyngeal tooth, near opening (Fig. 38A). Proventricle long and wide, barrel-shaped, through 3–4 segments, with about 18–20 muscle cell rows. Pygidium semi-circular, with two anal cirri similar to dorsal cirri but longer, and several papillae (Fig. 38B).

Remarks. This species was widely reported in Australia as Sphaerosyllis erinaceus and S. erinaceus erinaceus , a species described from Northern Europe, reported widely all around the world, from Arctic, temperate, tropical, to Antarctic seas. This appear to be a complex of species, in need of revision. There is not a recent redescription of the European specimens, which would probably clarify the situation. Fauvel (1923) states that the blades of the compound chaetae are long and slender, different from the short, falcate blades of the Australian specimens, suggesting that they are different species. Recently, I have examined some specimens from Spitzbergen identified as Sphaerosyllis erinaceus in the HZM collections and the compound chaetae are distinctly different to those reported from Australia, which are in fact a mixture of several of the species herein described in Erinaceusyllis . Imajima (1966) reported and described S. erinaceus from Japan, which agree quite well with the specimens from Spitzbergen, and these specimens are similar to E. hartmannschroederae n.sp., but the blades show distinct dorsoventral gradation in length. Several subspecies of S. erinaceus have been described from several areas, on the basis of differences in the shape and size of the compound chaetae; these differences are sufficiently important to consider them as distinct species.

Distribution. Australia (all states).

Habitat.All kind of sediments, intertidal to about 15 m depth.

Etymology. The species is named in honour to Dr Gesa Hartmann-Schröder, who reported and described many species of syllids from Australia and worldwide.

Figures

Fig. 39. SEM of Erinaceusyllis hartmannschroederae n.sp. (A) mature male with natatory chaetae, dorsal view. (B) mature female carrying eggs, dorsal view. (C) midbody of the mature female, dorsal view. (D) anterior end, dorsal view (right antenna and dorsal cirrus of chaetiger 1 missing). (E) detail of nuchal organs. (F) compound chaetae, midbody.