Family CIRRATULIDAE

Cirratulidae

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Family CIRRATULIDAE

Compiler and date details

Jan 2011 - P. Hutchings & M. Yerman, Australian Museum, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

14 July 2003

Introduction

Members of the Cirratulidae are small to medium-sized polychaetes with numerous segments. When alive, the body is often red, orange or yellow in colour, as are the branchiae and tentacular filaments which may almost cover the body. Cirratulids are deposit-feeding worms that burrow or crawl through the substratum. Australian cirratulids live in bays and estuaries in a range of sediment types, often associated with seagrass beds (except Dodecaceria which bores into calcareous substrates). In organically enriched sediment in estuaries they can reach high population densities. They typically bury their bodies just below the surface with their long branchiae and tentacles visible at the surface.

Despite recent studies by Blake (1991, 1996) this family is in need of a comprehensive systematic revision, with many potential new species and genera, and likely synonymies of existing genera. The number of species worldwide and in Australia cannot be estimated accurately in the absence of a taxonomic revision. In recent years several genera have been removed to other families (Ctenodrilidae, Cossuridae and Acrocirridae). The on-going work of Blake and of Petersen support the theory that high numbers of endemic species of cirratulids are to be expected, and that widely distributed and cosmopolitan species are probably rare.

Figures of 8 genera and 14 species were given by Beesley et al. (2000: App. 1) for representation of the family in Australian waters (this database recognises 17 species from 9 genera), and 11 genera and 159 species worldwide.

See Glasby (2000) for detailed treatment of the family.

Database Notes

proof read against Day & Hutchings 1979 by RW
checked against DELTA CD 2003 by RTJ

Diagnosis

General features. Epidermis more-or-less smooth. Pygidium simple ring or cone, or bilobed. Pygidial appendages absent.
Head & head structures. Head discrete and compact, dorsal to mouth. Prostomium conical, tapering to slender tip, or bluntly conical to trapezoidal (narrow end anteriorly). Eyes absent, or present; multiple; situated on prostomium; without lenses. Palps paired, or multiple (dorsolaterally positioned on anterior chaetigers); longitudinally grooved; dorsolateral. Nuchal organs indistinct paired dorsolateral patches. Peristomial ring single (but may be one or more achaetous segments which resemble a double peristomium).
Pharynx & pharyngeal apparatus. Foregut a ventral pharyngeal organ; dorsolateral ciliated folds present.
Body segments & parapodia. First segment chaetigerous, or a smooth ring. First chaetiger with both notochaetae and neurochaetae. Parapodia biramous with parapodial lobes absent or low; notopodial lobes represented by at least one chaetal lobe; neuropodial lobes represented by at least one chaetal lobe. Dorsal cirri absent. Ventral cirri absent. Branchiae present; arise from dorsum; occur on at least some chaetigerous segments; filiform.
Chaetae. Notochaetae present. Aciculae absent. Capillary chaetae hair-like; smooth, or hirsute-serrate. Spines absent, or present in most or all chaetigers, or present only in posterior chaetigers; in both notopodia and neuropodia; slightly curved and more-or-less smooth (may be distally bifid or knobbed). Hooks absent.
Tube & burrow. Tube absent or unconsolidated, or membraneous (rarely). Burrow traces absent, or irregular borings into calcareous substrata (rarely).

The above description was generated from: 'C.J. Glasby & K. Fauchald (2002 onwards). POLiKEY. An information system for polychaete families and higher taxa: Version 1: September 2002.'
(See ABRS website: Online Resources: Polikey, for Version 2, released June 2003)