Bruunilla Hartman, 1971: 1411

Bonifácio, Paulo & Menot, Lénaïck, 2019, New genera and species from the Equatorial Pacific provide phylogenetic insights into deep-sea Polynoidae (Annelida), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 185, pp. 555-635 : 594

Bruunilla Hartman, 1971: 1411 . – Pettibone, 1979: 384.

Type species: Bruunilla natalensis Hartman, 1971 .

Diagnosis (emended): Short body, dorsoventrally flattened, up to 18 segments. Prostomium bilobed. Frontal filaments present ( Bruunilla nealae sp. nov.) or absent ( Bruunilla natalensis ). Eyes absent. Median antenna present, lateral antennae absent. Facial tubercles present. Wing-like structure present on ventral side of lower lip. Tentaculophores without acicula or chaetae. Pharynx with two pairs of jaws, serrated margin. Dorsal tubercles absent. Elytrophores small, up to eight pairs, on segments 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 and 15. Parapodia subbiramous, notopodia shorter than neuropodia; noto- and neuropodia with elongate acicular lobe; tips of noto- and neuroaciculae not penetrating epidermis. Neuropodial papillae present. Notochaetae few, slender, distally flattened to concave, serrated along both margins; notochaetae more slender than neurochaetae. Neurochaetae numerous, with distal part flattened to concave, serrated along both margins. From segment 3, ventral cirri inserted subdistally on neuropodia. Pygidium with dorsal anus.

Remarks: This genus was first classified as a Fauveliopsidae Hartman,1971 , but the unique specimen (without any chaetae) was reviewed by Pettibone (1979), who transferred it to Macellicephalinae . The genus Bruunilla is easily recognized by the presence of a wing-like structure located ventrally on segments 1–3. The generic diagnosis is emended here in order to include characters observed in the new species described below, such as: presence of frontal filaments, neuropodial papillae and types of notochaetae and neurochaetae. Pettibone (1979) did not mention the presence of neuropodial papillae, although Hartman (1971) drew it as a short papilla on segment 7 ( Hartman, 1971: 1412, fig. 3). This kind of papilla has been observed before in species of Diplaconotum Loshamn, 1981 ( Loshamn, 1981: 12, fig. 5C), as a small, short papilla also on the neuropodia. However, this latter genus belongs to Polaruschakovinae , not having median or lateral antennae. This fact could explain the closer relationship between Bruunilla and taxa without antennae. The genus Bruunilla has been monotypic for almost four decades since its erection ( Pettibone, 1979). Increased exploration of the deep ocean has led to the discovery of several new forms that possess wing-like structures on their ventrum, a hallmark of this genus. One species is described here, but several others (seven MOTUs) were recognized by DNA only. Unfortunately, those specimens were in too poor condition to allow for a morphological description (data not presented). Our findings suggest that there is a much greater diversity of this genus in the deep sea than previously thought.