Polycirrus haematodes ( Claparède, 1864 )

Glasby, Christopher J. & Hutchings, Pat, 2014, Revision of the taxonomy of Polycirrus Grube, 1850 (Annelida: Terebellida: Polycirridae), Zootaxa 3877 (1), pp. 1-117 : 58

Polycirrus haematodes ( Claparède, 1864) , species inquirenda

Aphlebina haematodes Claparède, 1864: 485 , pl.2 fig.1.

Polycirrus haematodes .— Langerhans, 1884: 265, fig. 26.

Type locality. Port Vendres , on French-Spanish border, Mediterranean .

Material examined. None.

Comments. No type material exists as Claparède was not in the habit of designating types, and as the original description is very brief, we suggest that this is a species inquirenda. Attempts to locate any material from the type locality were unsuccesful. McIntosh (1922) synonymised P. elisabethae with P. haematodes ( Claparède, 1864) ; however, without type material of the latter we cannot assess that validity of this synonymy.

Holthe (1986b) provides a description of this species but it is unclear where his specimens were collected. He gives a very broad geographical distribution for this species, including the Mediterranean, the eastern North Atlantic to Madeira and the west coasts of Ireland and Scotland. We suggest that several species may have been confused under this name. Langerhans (1884) illustrates a Type 1 uncinus from a specimen from Madeira (see also Glasby & Glasby 2006).