Lygdamis rayrobertsi Kirtley, 1994

Santos, André Souza Dos, Brasil, Ana Claudia Dos Santos & Christoffersen, Martin Lindsey, 2014, Sabellaria and Lygdamis (Polychaeta: Sabellariidae) from reefs off northeastern Brazil including a new species of Sabellaria, Zootaxa 3881 (2), pp. 125-144 : 128-130

Lygdamis rayrobertsi Kirtley, 1994

Figure 2 A–B

Lygdamis rayrobertsi Kirtley, 1994: 134 , figs. 7.15.1–7.15.3. Lygdamis indicus .—Uebelacker, 1984: 49-5, fig. 49-2 (a–h).

Material examined. Total: 1 specimen. State of Rio Grande do Norte, Guamaré City: Project Caracterização Ambiental da Bacia Potiguar e Monitoramento Ambiental dos Emissários Submarinos do Pólo Industrial de Guamaré . St. BPOT 24DG (05º3.561’0’’ S 036º28.51’ 0’’W)[ POLY 00291]: 1 complete specimen, 8 mm long, on 21/05/2004, 77.5 m.

Additional material examined. Lygdamis indicus (Kinberg 1887) . Mozambique, Mozambique Channel, 24º40’S 35º38’E [LACM-AHF POLY 2472]: 1 complete specimen collected on crustacean carapaces in coarse shelly sand, 18 August 1964, 360 m depth.

Lygdamis indicus . International Indian Ocean Expedition, cruise 7, R/V ANTON BRUUN, St. AB 370G. Republic of Palau, Koror State, Malakal Island, entrance to Malakal Harbor, 35 m, Coral Reef Research Foundation, 963 L. H. [LACM-AHF POLY 2473]: 1 complete spec. collected in 1987.

Lygdamis laevispinis Grube, 1870 . St. AB 3706 [LACM-AHF POLY]: 2 complete specs.

Lygdamis splendidus Lechapt & Kirtley, 1998 . Pacific Ocean, South of New Caledonia, Biocal St. 66º (24’ S 55º18’ E) [LACM-AHF POLY]: 1 complete spec. collected on 03/09/1985.

Diagnosis. 28 pairs of long outer paleae, straight, with anterior end a curved tapered apex; 12 pairs of long inner paleae, straight, with anterior end a tapered apex. Body poorly pigmented; few brown eyespots along the body.

Diagnosis. 28 pairs of long outer paleae, straight, with anterior end a curved tapered apex; 12 pairs of long inner paleae, straight, with anterior end a tapered apex. Body poorly pigmented; few brown eyespots along the body.

Remarks. Five species of Lygdamis were previously reported from the Atlantic Ocean: L. gilchristi (McIntoshi, 1922) , L. kirkegaard Kirtley, 1994 , L. muratus ( Allen, 1904) , L. rayrobertsi , and L. wirtzi Nishi & Núñez, 1999 . Of these species, only L. rayrobertsi and L. wirtzi possess curved outer paleae. Both species are very similar but differ in the form of the inner palea, which is straight, with distal end terminating in a tapered apex in L. rayrobertsi , while it is straight, with anterior end terminating in a curved tapered apex in L. wirtzi . Lygdamis rayrobertsi was previously recorded in Caribbean waters while L. wirtzi inhabits European waters.

Lygdamis rayrobertsi is characterized by the form of inner and outer paleae, but the number of pairs of paleae were not indicated in the original description. The specimens of L. rayrobertsi identified herein are very similar to the previously known material, in spite of their geographical distances. The examined specimens represent the first reported occurrence of the species along the Brazilian coast.

Other species of Lygdamis that were recorded in the Atlantic Ocean ( L. gilchristi , L. kirkegaardi , and L. muratus ), have long, straight outer and inner paleae with anterior end terminating in a tapered apex. These characters suggest that they could represent a single species. This problem was commented on by Kirtley (1994) who did not synonymize L. gilchristi and L. muratus because he had not examined the type material. At the same time, Kirtley (1994) described L. kirkergaardi from the North Atlantic, which has the same distribution as L. muratus . These two species also have a similar morphology (number of outer and inner paleae, and form of paleae) and need to be revised in the future.

In the original descriptions of L. muratus and L. gilchristi , and in other subsequent publications, the body was not illustrated, neither were the form of the lateral palps or of the median organ. Only the form of the outer and inner paleae were figured.

Lygdamis rayrobertsi inhabits sand and rocky substrates, or any hard surface such as rocks and crustacean carapaces belonging to Panulirus argus Latreille, 1804 , or polychaete tubes ( Kirtley 1994). The species has been found in depths of 2–73 meters and was collected at 77,5 meters in Guamaré Bay.

Lygdamis rayrobertsi was originally described from the Gulf of Mexico, along the coast of Florida in Palm Beach ( Kirtley 1994), and now is reported for Brazil.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Lygdamis rayrobertsi Kirtley, 1994 (POLY 00291): (A) Body in ventro-lateral view; (B) Body in dorso-lateral view. Scale bars: A – B, 1 mm.