Sphaerosyllis ClapareÁde, 1863

Nogueira, J. M. De M., 2001, Description of ® ve new species of Exogoninae Rioja, 1925 (Polychaeta: Syllidae) associated with the stony coral Mussismilia hispida (Verrill, 1868) in SaÄo Paulo State, Brazil, Journal of Natural History 35, pp. 1773-1794 : 1777

Genus Sphaerosyllis ClapareÁde, 1863

Sphaerosyllis ClapareÁde, 1863: 45 , pl. XIII, ®gures 36±38. Type species: Sphaerosyllis hystrix ClapareÁde, 1863: 45 , pl. XIII, ®gures 36, 37. San MartõÂn, 1984b: 245±247, ®gure 57.

Diagnosis

Small and slender worms, body often covered by numerous papillae. Prostomium semicircular, with two pairs of lensed eyes and, sometimes, two anterior ocular spots. Three small antenae, with bulbous bases and cylindrical tips. Palps fused for most of their length. Peristomium with one pair of tentacular cirri, similar in shape to the antenae. Dorsal cirri also similar in shape to the antennae, commonly missing in chaetiger 2. Ventral cirri digitiform. Pharynx armed with one tooth. For the main diagnostic features of this genus, see Riser (1991).

Sphaerosyllis is a large genus, comprising more than 60 described species, that San MartõÂn (1984b) split into two subgenera: Sphaerosyllis and Prosphaerosyllis. Sphaerosyllis (Sphaerosyllis) has the pharynx thinner than the proventriculum, with a tooth near the anterior end, proventriculum short, and usually lacks dorsal cirrus in chaetiger 2; Sphaerosyllis (Prosphaerosyllis) has the pharynx and the proventriculum about the same width, a pharyngeal tooth placed away from the anterior end of the pharynx, proventriculum long, and usually possesses a dorsal cirrus in chaetiger 2. Some subsequent authors adopted this classi®cation (Hartmann-Schr oÈder, 1996), while others have not followed it ( Riser, 1991; Russell, 1989), although it shows diOEerent trends of evolution within the group.

In Brazil, this genus has been found only once ( Temperini, 1981), with two species identi®ed: S. hystrix ClapareÁde, 1863 , and Sphaerosyllis sp. , here described as S. isabellae sp. n.