Abstract
The original description of the fan worm Parasabella fullo (Grube, 1878) is brief and mainly focused on the color. This paper provides a redescription based on syntype material from northern Japan kept at Museum für Naturkunde of Berlin and new records in California (USA). Diagnostic characters used in redescribing the species are the shapes of inferior thoracic notochaetae, ventral thoracic shields and dorsal collar margins. Although this Japanese species was collected on vessels’ hulls in California, it is not clear if and where the species is established here, due to past difficulties in identification without well-defined characters. Nevertheless, a resident population appears to exist in the region, given the species occurrence on local recreational vessels. The redescription provides information to distinguish it from the local Californian indigenous species Parasabella pallida Moore, 1923.
Highlights
In a recent taxonomic analysis of invertebrates collected from the hulls of vessels in California, USA, the western Pacific polychaete Parasabella fullo (Grube, 1878) was identified by L
Distinct from the California native Parasabella pallida Moore, 1923, these congeners are challenging to distinguish from each other based on existing descriptions
Parasabella fullo was originally described from northern Japan, but drawings or diagnostic features were not included by Grube (1878)
Summary
In a recent taxonomic analysis of invertebrates collected from the hulls of vessels in California, USA, the western Pacific polychaete Parasabella fullo (Grube, 1878) was identified by L. Parasabella fullo was originally described from northern Japan, but drawings or diagnostic features were not included by Grube (1878). Zachs (1933) reported Sabella fullo from northern Japan, suggesting it belonged to the genus Demonax Kinberg, 1867. Annenkova (1938), Uschakov (1955) and Buzhinskaja (1967) reported S. fullo in the northwestern Pacific under D. leucaspius (sic), probably following Zachs (1933). Buzhinskaja (2013) placed S. fullo within Parasabella, a diagnosis or redescription of the species was not included. P. fullo is only known to have established populations in northern Japan and eastern Russia (Zachs 1933; Annenkova 1938; Uschakov 1955; Buzhinskaja 1967). We examine records of P. fullo and P. pallida in California, stressing the main characters to discriminate indigenous from non-indigenous species of Parasabella along the northeastern Pacific
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