Notophyllum multicirris ( Grube, 1878 )

Kato, Tetsuya & Pleijel, Fredrik, 2002, A revision of Notophyllum Örsted, 1843 (Phyllodocidae, Polychaeta), Journal of Natural History 36 (10), pp. 1135-1178 : 1164-1166

Notophyllum multicirris ( Grube, 1878)

(gure 14)

Phyllodoc e (Eulalia) multicirris Grube, 1878: 100 , pl. 6, gure 4.

Paraeulalia multicirris: Czerniavsky, 1882: 171 .

Notophyllum multicirris: Pleijel, 1991: 257 .

Notophyllum splendens: Augener, 1913: 140–142 , gure 11; Hartmann-Schröder, 1979: 82–83, gures 27–31. Not Notophyllu m splendens (Schmarda, 1861) .

Material examined. Philippines: holotype ( MPW 338 ), Bohol . Japan: one specimen (ZIHU-1876), Sesoko Island , Okinawa , 3–4 m, coral rubble, 14 November 1994. Australia: one specimen, One Tree Island, Capricorn Group , Queensland , 23ss30¾S 152ss04¾E, intertidal, reef at, 18 November 1996, collection of F.P.; one specimen (HZM-P-16674), Broome , Western Australia ; one specimen (HZM-P-16721), Broome .

Description. Holotype complete, 23 mm long and 2.7 mm wide for 95 segments. Up to 39.5 mm long and 2.7 mm wide for 102 segments. Body rather narrow, of uniform width, dorso-ventrall y attened, dorsum completely covered by dorsal cirri. Prostomium rounded, with antero-ventral elongation and a pair of eyes with lenses. Length of paired antennae and palps ca two-thirds length of prostomium. Median antenna as long as prostomium or slightly longer, inserted between eyes. Nuchal organs with three to six long and slender lobes (gure 14A, B). Number of lobes in smaller specimens (<18 mm long) unknown. Proboscis long, probably narrower than prostomium (ZIHU-1876; examined in dissection), with single rows of discoidal papillae on each side; rows absent from proximal-most part. Proximal part dorsolaterally with two large rounded papillae on each side. Proximal and median part of proboscis (>nine-tenths of total length) dorsally and ventrally covered with diOEusely distributed minute, rounded papillae 8–12 m m in diameter; density of papillae higher on ventral than on dorsal side; proximal-most part with equally high density on both sides. Distal-most part covered with large attened papillae, 70–100 m m in maximum diameter. Terminal ring smooth, without papillae. Segments 1 and 2 dorsally invisible; juvenile and smaller specimens unknown. Tentacular cirri of segment 1 reaching segment 4–5. Dorsal tentacular cirri of segment 2 and 3 reaching segment 7–8. Ventral tentacular cirri of segment 2 reaching ca segment 5, asymmetrical, distally gradually tapered; posteriorly directed. Segment 2 with one to four compound chaetae arising from ventral tentacular cirrophores. Segment 3 with small neuropodial lobes with ca four compound chaetae, and small ventral cirri. Segments 2 and 3 with dorsal and ventral aciculae. Dorsal aciculae absent from segments 4 and 5; distribution in other anterior segments unknown. Dorsal cirri of median segments broad reniform. Tips of dorsal cirri absent in large specimens; unknown in juveniles. Dorsal cirrophores rounded, with single aciculae (gure 14C–F). Notopodial capillary chaetae absent. Neuropodial lobes with 17–25 compound chaetae. Ventral cirri reniform. Pygidial cirri attened, oval, slightly longer than wide. Pygidial papilla present.

Colour. Live animals dark blue or green with many dark rounded spots on dorsal and ventral cirri. Tentacular cirri of segment 2 and 3 bright white. Eyes red. Colour and pigmentation pattern well retained after preservation. Eyes dark brown.

Habitat. Intertidally to 3–4 m depth, among coral rubble and on corals.

Distribution. Tropical and subtropical waters of the Philippines, Japan and Australia.

Remarks. Notophyllum multicirris diOEers from other Notophyllum in the combination of slender body, rounded dorsal cirrophores, proboscis with lateral rows of discoidal papillae, green dorsal cirri with numerous dark green rounded spots, and nuchal organs with a relatively large number of lobes. As seen from dissection of specimens from Australia and Japan the proboscis of N. multicirris is probably narrower than the prostomium when everted. The presence of rows of discoidal papillae was veri ed in a compound microscope through the body wall of the holotype, which was not in a condition that permitted dissection.

Grube (1878) described the holotype as having two pairs of eyes. Nevertheless, re-examination of his specimen shows it to agree with all other Notophyllum in having a single pair of eyes.

Notophyllum multicirris has been considered a junior synonym of N. splendens by some researchers ( Augener, 1913; Fauvel, 1930, 1953). However, N. multicirris diOEers from N. splendens in having rounded dorsal cirrophores, a slender proboscis, and in the numerous dark spots on the dorsal and ventral cirri.. The Australian records of N. splendens by Augener (1913) and Hartmann-Schröder (1979) are here referred to N. multicirris .