Additional new species of the family Terebellidae (Polychaeta) from Western Australia, with a key to all described species of the region

Abstract

The terebellid fauna of Western Australia includes 39 species, of which six are new; one new species belongs to a new genus: Streblosoma dytikos n.sp., Lanice sinata n.sp., Lanicides attenuata n. sp., Pista anthela n. sp., Pista kimberleyensis n.sp., and Pseudoproclea australis n.g., n.sp. Many species and several genera are recorded for the first time from Western Australia. These records often represent considerable range extensions and include several genera previously known only from the Eastern seaboard. A key to the genera and species is given. Hutchings and Glasby (1986a, 1987, 1988) have recently revised the polychaete family Terebellidae in Australia. However, when this revision was undertaken, little material from Western Australia was available for study. During 1987 and 1988, extensive collecting trips were made to Albany, south-western Australia (January, 1988), the Perth area (January, 1988), Dampier Archipelago (March / April, 1987) and the offshore islands in the Kimberley region in north-western Australia (July, 1988). These trips yielded several new species and considerable range extension for many species. Since many of these species have only recently been described by Hutchings & Glasby (1986a, 1987, 1988) full descriptions and synonymies are not given, although additional variation is described. Similarly habitat notes for previously described species are only given for the Western Australian localities in the Material Examined section. Collections at the Western Australian localities were made by SCUBA diving and involved collecting clumps of encrusting organisms and algal holdfasts. In the tropical locations pieces of coral substrate (predominantly dead), or coralline algae were collected and broken to extract the polychaetes. At all localities, extensive intertidal collections were also made, including crevice and encrusting fauna and sediment infauna. In the Kimberley region, the spring tidal range is about 10 m and extensive mud/sand flats are exposed and the intertidal basaltic rocks split easily often revealing numerous terebellids. The coral reefs in the Kimberley region are subjected to heavy siltation and strong currents, and filter feeding organisms are abundant. Limited collecting was also carried out in the mangroves in the Dampier Archipelago and the Kimberley region. The only habitat not adequately sampled in these localities was shallow subtidal soft sediments.