The macrobenthic nemertean fauna of the Albany region, Western Australia

Abstract

Thirteen species of macrobenthic marine nemerteans from the Albany region of Western Australia are described and illustrated. Only one of these, the heteronemertean Baseodiscus delineatus (Delle Chiaje, 1825), is a previously known form. The new taxa established are the anoplan heteronemerteans Quasilineus lucidoculatus sp. nov. (Cerebratulidae) and Australineus albidecus gen. et sp. nov. (Lineidae), and the enoplan monostiliferoideans Aegialonemertes chlorophthalma gen. et sp. nov., Ammonemertes erseusi gen. et sp. nov., Digononemertes australiensis gen. et. sp. nov., Eonemertes emmyakos sp. nov., Halimanemertes slacksmithae gen. et sp. nov., Ischyronemertes albanyensis gen. et sp. nov., I. erythrophleps sp. nov., I. tetrophthalma sp. nov., Paranemertopsis wellsi gen. et sp. nov. and Pheroneronemertes dianae gen. et sp. nov. A key for the field identification of these species is provided. The nemertean fauna of Western Australia has been almost totally neglected. General texts dealing with Australian marine life, such as those of Dakin (1969) or Stephenson and Stephenson (1972), include no reference to nemerteans, even by phylum, from any part of the Western Australian coast. The only species so far described from the region are a terrestrial form, Argonemertes dendyi (Dakin, 1915) (Pantin, 1969; Moore, 1975), and two species of Carcinonemertes, C. australiensis Campbell, Gibson and Evans, 1989 (Campbell et al., 1989) and C. humesi Gibson and Jones, 1990 (Gibson & Jones, 1990), a genus comprising specialized egg-predators living on decapod Crustacea. The present study is thus the first dealing with the macrobenthic marine nemerteans of Western Australia.