Hesione paulayi Salazar-Vallejo, 2018

Hesione paulayi Salazar-Vallejo, 2018 View in CoL

Material examined

ZSI/ MARC / P10797 , 01 ex., 32.48 mm TL, Kavaravatii, Lakshadweep Island, India, S. Balakrishnan & Party members, 18/x/2019 .

Diagnostic characters

The body length is 32.48 mm and its width is 1.77 mm (without setae) and 4.43 mm (with setae). Body segments 17. Brownish dorsal transverse bands and irregular spots are present on the dorsal side of the body ( Figure 2 View Figure 2 ). Transverse band is well defined along the anterior chaetigers but none in chaetigers 1, discontinuous band in chaetigers 3; chaetigers 2 with a wide band, well defined, straight along with the anterior margin, posterior margin irregular, 3-4 times longer than a band in chaetiger 4. Parapodia with chaetal lobes tapered, truncate. Neurochaetae blades are bidentate ( Figure 3B View Figures 3 ), 3-4 times longer than wide, oriented at an angle from the handle, teeth of equal length, sub-distal tooth typically wider, guard thick, approaching sub-distal tooth. The prostomium is slightly wider than it is long, the anterior margin is truncated, the lateral margins rounded, and the posterior with a shallow notch. Digitate antennae that are longer than the space between the eyes or four times as long as they are wide. Eyes brown, with the front one being twice as big as the back one. Tentacular cirri thin. The longest ones reaching the chaetigers 5. Ventral cirri irregularly contracted, reaching chaetal tips.

Distribution

Widely distributed along the Papua New, Mariana Islands, Northern Marshall Islands, Philippines, and Australia Salazar-Vallejo, (2018) the present study reports this species first time in Indian waters ( Figure 1).