Introduction

A new marine species of Tubificoides (Annelida: Oligochaeta: Tubificidae) from Hawaii, U.S.A.

A new marine species of Tubificoides (Annelida: Oligochaeta: Tubificidae) from Hawaii, U.S.A.

CP-2005-16
A new marine species of Tubificoides (Annelida: Oligochaeta: Tubificidae) from Hawaii, U.S.A.

Christer Erseus, Olav Giere, Jennifer Dreyer, and Julie H. Bailey-Brock

Tubificoides calvescentis is described from subtidal sediments near a sewage outfall at Sand Island, off Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii. It is characterized by hair chaetae being restricted to preclitellar segments, small atria and sperma-thecae, and smooth, cylindrical, cuticular penis sheaths. Tubificoides bakeri Brink-hurst, 1985, known from the West coast of North America, appears to be closely related to the new species; its male genitalia are virtually identical to those of T. calvescentis. However, T. bakeri does not possess distinct cuticular papillae, which are evident in T. calvescentis, and it has more numerous chaetae and more slender spermatozeugmata than those of the new species. The paper also provides a nomenclaturally updated list of all marine oligochaetes reported from Hawaii.