Eunicidae (Annelida: Polychaeta) associated with Phragmathopoma caudata Morch, 1863 and some coral reefs from Veracruz, Gulf of Mexico

The state of Veracruz, located on the eastern coast of Mexico (Gulf of Mexico), possesses a great variety of coastal environments, from sandy beaches, rocky shores, coralline reefs and islands. Although this ecosystem supports a high diversity of habitats, knowledge of the family Eunicidae in these zones is brief. Previously 12 eunicid species were recorded for this area, 7 of these were reported by Rioja (1946, 1958 and 1960): Eunice antennata, Eunice aphroditois, Eunice cariboea, Eunice rubra, Lysidice ninetta, Marphysa minima and Palola siciliensis. Later, other researchers extended the list of known eunicid species including: SalazarVallejo (1981) reported E. cariboea, Eunice norvegica and Paramarphysa longula; Horta-Puga (1982) mentioned E. cariboea and Nematonereis hebes; de León-González (1985) reported L. ninetta and P. longula; Reyes-Barragán and Salazar-Vallejo (1991) reported Marphysa amadae and Marphysa sanguinea for La Mancha lagoon and Sanchez-Wall SCIENTIA MARINA 70S3 December 2006, 91-99, Barcelona (Spain) ISSN: 0214-8358


Eunice cariboea
Distribution.Originally described from Christiansted St. Croix, Virgin Islands.Widely distributed in tropical and subtropical coasts, and in the Western Atlantic it is known from Bermuda to Brazil.In Mexico this species is known from Baja California Sur, Sonora, Sinaloa and Guerrero in the Pacific, and from Veracruz in the Atlantic.

Eunice mutilata
Distribution.Amphiamerican in tropical waters.In Mexico this species is known from the Revillagigedo Islands, Jalisco and Nayarit in the Pacific, and in the Atlantic it had been recorded previously only from Quintana Roo.This is the first record in Veracruz.
Distribution.Amphiamerican in tropical waters, and known from the eastern Pacific near Panama.This is the first record from the Atlantic.
Distribution.Caribbean, from St. Thomas Island.This is the first record from Mexican littoral regions.Description.Holotype complete, with 70 chaetigers, 15 mm long, 1 mm wide including parapodia, and yellowish in colour.Prostomium rounded anteriorly, longer than wide.Median sulcus not seen.One pair of rounded black eyes posterior to palps and lateral to the bases of lateral antennae.Ceratophores ring-shaped in all antenniform structures.Palps and antennae with cylindrical articulations basally, becoming drop-shaped distally.Middle antenna longer, reaching chaetiger 5, with 7 articulations; right lateral antenna with 5 articulations, left one with 4; palps with 2 and one, respectively.First ring of peristomium two thirds of total peristomial length.One pair of short and smooth peristomial cirri, reaching middle part of first persistomial ring (Fig. 1A).
Distribution.Caribbean Sea and Bermuda.In Mexico this species is known from Quintana Roo.This is the first record from Veracruz.
Limbate chaetae marginally serrated.Pectinate chaetae present from middle parapodia, with 17-18 teeth, heterodont (Fig. 3C); posterior ones isodont with 14 teeth (Fig. 3D).Anterior parapodia with bidentate falcigers of 3 sizes: a longer one, with the lateral tooth shorter than the distal tooth (Fig. 3E); the middle and small sizes with a lateral and distal tooth triangular, subequal (Figs.3F-G); all blades with slightly serrated hood.Falcigers on middle and posterior parapodia have only those with a small blade.Shaft slightly wide distally, marginally spinulate.One acicula per parapodium on anterior chaetigers, transitioning to 3 thin aciculae around chaetiger 20.The middle to posterior chaetigers with one acicula per parapodium, blunt-headed, honey-coloured, and darker toward posterior end (Fig. 3H).Subacicular hooks yellowish and bidentate, with hood, present from parapodia 29, and always single.Distal tooth shorter than lateral tooth (Fig. 3I).Two pairs of anal cirri present; dorsal pair as long as last four chaetigers, ventral pair only an eigth of the length of the dorsal pair.
Etymology.The species name is taken from Veracruz, the state from which the type locality is described.
Remarks.The specimens of Marphysa veracruzensis vary in some characters: branchiae beginning on chaetiger 17 to 39, maximal number of branchial filaments 2-3, and subacicular hooks starting on chaetiger 24 to 34.All specimens have maxillary decalcified apparatus, with the same formula as the holotype.Only 4 specimens with differences on maxillae II (4+4), and another one with differences on maxillae IV (5+8) were seen.The differences between the beginning of the branchiae and subacicular hooks could be due to differences in the size of the specimens.
Distribution.Villa del Mar Beach, Boquilla de Oro, Villa Rica, and Sacrificios Island, and Veracruz, Mexico.
previous manuscript.We are also indebted to three anonymous reviewers whose comments and insights greatly improved this manuscript.
One of the main diagnostic characters of Eunice romanvivesi n. sp. is the presence of tridentate falcigers.Others species with this kind of chaetae are Eunice aequalis (Grube, 1878) from Australia, Eunice aucklandica Avernicev (1974) from the Antarctic Ocean, Eunice elseyi (Baird, 1869) from Australia, Eunice havaica (Kinberg, 1865) from Hawaii, Eunice martensi (Grube, 1878) from the Philippines and Eunice miurai Carrera-Parra & Salazar-Vallejo (1998b) from the Mexican Caribbean.Only E. aucklandica, E. havaica and E.miurai have both bi-and tridentate falcigers along the body like E. romanvivesi.Eunice aucklandica and E. havaica differ from E. romanvivesi mainly in the shape of the acicula and the beginning of subacicular hooks; E. aucklandica and E. havaica have straight aciculae, tapering and blunt, and subacicular hooks appearing from chaetiger 18 and 19-23 respectively, while E. romanvivesi has hammerheaded aciculae, and subacicular hooks from chaetiger 11.Eunice miurai differs mainly from E. romanvivesi in having articulated peristomial and dorsal cirri, while these characters are smooth in the new species.