Neopolynoe acanellae Verrill 1881, n. comb.

Neopolynoe acanellae (Verrill, 1881) n. comb.

Figure 3 A–F

Polynoe (Eunoa) acanellae Verrill, 1881: pl. 6 figs. 5, 5a; Verrill (1885a): 525, pl. 39 fig. 172; Verrill (1885b): 424. Polynoe acanellae: Hartman (1942): 27, figs. 27–31.

Harmothoe acanellae: Ditlevsen (1917): 27, pl. 1 figs. 6, 8, 9, 13; pl. 2 fig. 4. Harmothoe (Hermadion) acanellae: Pettibone (1963): 35–36, fig. 6l–m. Nemidia antillicola Augener, 1906: 126, pl. 3 figs. 53–59.

Polynoe antillicola: Fauvel (1913): 24; Fauvel (1914): 68.

Polynoe antillicola chondrocladiae Fauvel, 1943: 200, fig. 1a–d.

Neopolynoe africana Kirkegaard, 2001: 392, fig. 1.

Type material examined. Polynoe (Eunoa) acanellae: YPM 2741, lectotype, designated here (af, mf), "Fish Hawk", off Newport, South of Cape Cod (Massachusetts), St. 880, 13 September 1880, 39 °48'30''N 70°54'00''W, 252,5 fms., coll. R.I. - U.S. Fish. Commission; YPM 2742, 3 paralectotypes, designated here (af), "Fish Hawk", off Newport, South of Cape Cod (Massachusetts), St. 894, 2 October 1880, 39 °53'N 70°58'30''W, 365 fms., coll. R.I. - U.S. Fish. Commission; YPM 2910, 11 paralectotypes, designated here (11 af, 2 mf, 2 pf), "Fish Hawk", off Martha's Vineyard, St. 1028, 14 September 1881, 39 °57'N 69°17'W, 410 fms., coll. U.S. Fish. Commission, det. A.E. Verrill.

Neopolynoe paradoxa (Storm, 1888): ZMUO C 2031, paralectotype (af), Norway, Røberg, 250 fathoms.

Neopolynoe africana Kirkegaard, 2001: BMNH 2003.848, holotype (cs), “Discovery”, Northeast of Canary Islands, Stn.10158 #1, 11 October 1979, 29 °24’N 12°12’W, 1600 m, det. & ded. J.B. Kirkegaard.

Comparative material examined. SMF 18879, 1 spm. (cs), Flemish Cap EU Survey 2007, "Vizconde de Eza", off Newfoundland, St. FC-165, 46.988°N 43.4607°W, 1079 m, associated with Anthomastus sp., leg. F.J. Murillo, ded. Á. Altuna, det. R. Barnich. SMF 18880, 1 spm. (cs), Flemish Cap EU Survey 2007, "Vizconde de Eza", off Newfoundland, St. FC-177, 46.941°N 46.6702°W, 770 m, associated with Anthomastus sp., leg. F.J. Murillo, ded. Á. Altuna, det. R. Barnich. BMNH 2003.849-858, 13 spms., “Discovery”, Northeast of Canary Islands, Stn.10157 #1, 11 October 1979, 29 °24’N 12°12’W, 1600 m, det. & ded. J.B. Kirkegaard as Neopolynoe africana. BMNH 2003.859, 1 spm. with piece of sponge Chondrocladia, “Discovery”, Northeast of Canary Islands, Stn.10157 #1, 11 October 1979, 29 °24’N 12°12’W, 1600 m, det. & ded. J.B. Kirkegaard as Neopolynoe africana.

Description (based on lectotype YPM 2741). Anterior fragment with 48 segments. At anterior end (Fig. 3 A) prostomium bilobed, with cephalic peaks; ceratophore of median antenna in anterior notch, style smooth, tapering; lateral antennae inserted ventrally to median antenna, styles smooth, tapering; eyes large, anterior pair situated dorsolaterally at widest part of prostomium, posterior pair dorsally near hind margin of prostomium; palps tapering.

First or tentacular segment with a pair of tentaculophores inserted laterally to prostomium, without notochaetae, but with a dorsal and a ventral tentacular cirrus, right dorsal styles missing. Second or buccal segment with first pair of elytra, biramous parapodia and long tapering ventral or buccal cirri, reaching beyond neurochaetae. Following segments with ventral cirri shorter, but still rather long, reaching beyond tip of neuropodium (Fig. 3 D).

Fifteen pairs of elytra, on segments 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 26, 29 and 32; elytral surface covered by numerous conical microtubercles; few scattered, short papillae at outer lateral and posterior margin and adjacent surface (Fig. 3 B,C). Cirrigerous segments with distinct dorsal tubercles; dorsal cirri with cylindrical cirrophore, styles long and tapering (about twice as long as longest neurochaetae).

Parapodia biramous; notopodia and neuropodia with elongate acicular lobe, neuropodia with digitiform supra-acicular process; tips of noto- and neuroacicula penetrating epidermis (Fig. 3 D). Notochaetae about as stout as neurochaetae, with numerous rows of spines and blunt tip (Fig. 3 E); neurochaetae more numerous, with numerous rows of spines only distally, and unidentate, falcate tip (Fig. 3 F).

Measurements. Lectotype YPM 2741 (Fig. 3 A–F): L 32 mm (total af + mf), W 7 mm for 48 segments (af 42 and mf 6 segments). Paralectotypes YPM 2742: L 28 mm, W 8 mm for 33 segments (af, pharynx extended); L 25 mm, W 6 mm for 43 segments (af, pharynx extended, last 3 segments regenerating); L 15 mm, W 7 mm for 23 segments (af). Largest paralectotype in YPM 2910: L 55 mm, W 9 mm for 54 segments.

Remarks. Neopolynoe acanellae (Verrill, 1881) n. comb. has been assigned to various genera in the past: to Polynoe Savigny in Lamarck, 1818, respectively Eunoe Malmgren, 1866 by Verrill (1881), to Harmothoe by Ditlevsen (1917), and to Hermadion (as subgenus of Harmothoe) by Pettibone (1963). We reexamined the type material and found the species to belong to Neopolynoe Loshamn, 1981, with the generic characters listed above. Neopolynoe differs mainly from Polynoe due to the presence of cephalic peaks and a neuropodial supra-acicular process; it differs from Eunoe due to its much longer body, from Harmothoe due to its much longer body and its exclusively unidentate neurochaetae, and from Hermadion due to its much longer body, and the presence of cephalic peaks and a neuropodial supra-acicular process (for generic characters discussed above please refer to Loshamn 1981, Barnich and Fiege 2003 and Tables 1 and 2 herein).

The only other valid species of Neopolynoe known is N. paradoxa (Storm, 1888), type species of the genus. According to the description of N. paradoxa given by Loshamn (1981) and our own examination of the N. paradoxa paralectotype N. acanellae differs from this species by the following characters: antennae and cirri smooth (versus distinctly papillate in N. paradoxa), elytral margin with few scattered, short papillae (versus numerous, long papillae in N. paradoxa), supra-acicular process digitiform (versus thick, stout in N. paradoxa), and ventral cirri long, reaching beyond tip of neuropodium (versus short, not reaching tip of neuropodium in N. paradoxa).

Distribution and habitat. Northwestern and Northeastern Atlantic, from Iceland to Canary Islands, in 460 to 1919 m, associated with soft corals of the genera Acanella and Anthomastus and sponges of the genus Chondrocladia.