Capitellidae Grube, 1862 (Annelida: Polychaeta) from the Hawaiian Islands with description of two new species

Abstract

A survey of the capitellids from the Hawaiian Islands has yielded 16 species in seven genera, most represent newrecords and two species are newly described, Notodasus dasybranchoides sp. nov. and Scyphoproctus edmondsonisp. nov. The species Capitella minima, Capitellethus cinctus and Scyphoproctus pullielloides are the mostcommon and widely distributed capitellids in Hawaii, present in subtidal sediments surrounding outfall diffusersand also at reference locations. The species Mediomastus californiensis and Capitella giardi may have beenintroduced to Oahu from different sources, the former is abundant in soft sediments of Honolulu and Pearl Harborsand the latter is found associated with commercial oysters in muddy ponds. The genera Branchiocapitella andPulliella are considered herein as synonyms of Capitella and Scyphoproctus, respectively. This paper is the firstcomprehensive study of the Hawaiian capitellids and all species are described and illustrated with line drawings,color and SEM photographs. A key to all 16 capitellid species found in shallow waters from the main Hawaiian islands is provided.