Genus Parapionosyllis Fauvel, 1923

Parapionosyllis Fauvel, 1923: 289 .

Diagnosis. Body small to minute. Prostomium with 2 pairs of eyes and, sometimes, a pair of eyespots, 3 bowling-pin shaped antennae. Palps partially fused, distal half or 1 ⁄ 3 free of each other. Single pair of tentacular cirri, bottle- or bowling-pin shaped, located lateroventrally. Dorsal cirri on all parapodia, short, bowling-pin shaped. Parapodial lobes conical, with an small, thin distal rounded papilla. Parapodial glands present. Pharynx provided with an anterior tooth, surrounded by soft papillae. Compound chaetae with unidentate blades provided with a subdistal spine and rounded tip; aciculae with a rounded, slightly hollowed tip. Dorsal simple chaetae usually subdistally serrated. Ventral simple chaetae sigmoid, usually unidentate. Mature males with natatory chaetae; mature females brooding eggs or juveniles ventrally, lacking natatory chaetae. Parapionosyllis is identical to Brania, but having a single pair rather than two pairs of tentacular cirri.

Type species. Pionosyllis gestans Pierantoni, 1903 (fide Hartman, 1959).

Key to the species of Parapionosyllis recorded from Australia

1 Blades of compound chaetae provided with short spines and a long, distinct subdistal erect spine ...................................................................... P. winnunga n.sp.

—— Blades of compound chaetae with moderately long spines and subdistal spine not longer than marginal spines .................................................... P. richardi n.sp.