Anoplosyllinae Aguado & San Martín, 2009 (Annelida: Syllidae) from shelf and slope depths in the northwest Atlantic Ocean, primarily off New England, slope depths in the Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana, and shallow water in British Columbia in the Northeast Pacific

NANCY J. MACIOLEK — 2026-02-12

Collections of syllid polychaetes belonging to the subfamily Anoplosyllinae from shelf and slope depths in the northwest Atlantic Ocean, primarily off New England, slope depths in the Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana, and shallow water in British Columbia in the Northeast Pacific were examined. Three of the five anoplosyllin genera were represented: Streptospinigera Kudenov, 1983, Streptosyllis Webster & Benedict, 1884, and Syllides Örsted, 1845. Sixteen taxa were found, including six that are new to science; all are described and illustrated herein. Five species belonging to Streptospinigera were found, including Streptospinigera niuqtuut Olivier, San Martín, & Archambault, 2013 and four new species: Streptospinigera karlbansei sp. nov. from British Columbia; Sts. kudenovi sp. nov. from 350 m off Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico; and Sts. nola sp. nov. and Sts. septima sp. nov. from 850 m off Louisiana. Six species belonging to the genus Streptosyllis were found: Streptosyllis arenae Webster & Benedict, 1884, Str. varians Webster & Benedict, 1887, and Str. verrilli (Moore, 1907); one new species, Streptosyllis mallea sp. nov. from 800 m off South Carolina, is described; Syllides minutus Blake & Weston, 1977, from California, is transferred to Streptosyllis; and Str. pettiboneae Perkins, 1981, is removed from synonymy with Str. websteri Southern, 1914. In addition, Streptosyllis cf. arenae, which differs from Str. arenae in the pattern of hooded and non-hooded setae, is discussed. Five species and one uncertain taxon belonging to the genus Syllides, are included: Syl. benedicti Banse, 1971 and Syl. convolutus Webster & Benedict, 1884 are redescribed from new material; Syl. eburneus Riser, 1997 is poorly known and no new material was found; Syllides setosus Verrill, 1882 is revalidated and redescribed, with the designation of a neotype; Syllides profundus sp. nov., a deep-water species from 600 m off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, is described. A single specimen with double helmet-tipped golden acicula is discussed as Syllides cf. benedicti Banse. The separation of the genera is discussed, along with a key, and tables of morphological details of all species of Streptospinigera are presented.

Zootaxa

Anoplosyllinae Aguado & San Martín, 2009 (Annelida: Syllidae) from shelf and slope depths in the northwest Atlantic Ocean, primarily off New England, slope depths in the Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana, and shallow water in British Columbia in the Northeast Pacific