(Dujardin, 1839)

Description:
Prostomium quadrangular to semicircular with four eyes in a trapezoid arrangement. Palps as long as prostomium extending as two long lips. Median antenna longer than lateral ones. Lateral antennae flask-shaped as long as or longer than palps.
Dorsal tentacular cirri flask- or spindle-shaped, as long as median antennae, ventral shorter. Dorsal cirri not smaller at the basis, unlike in Brania limbata .
Dorsal cirri shorter than dorsal tentacular cirri. Ventral cirri short. Aciculae present with terminal button. Blades of compound chaetae of different size upper 3 times as long as lower chaetae, bidentate. Additionally one upper and one lower bidentate simple chaeta present on the middle and posterior parapodia (B. pusilla-detail). Pharynx with 8 round papillae and one anterior tooth.

Size:
Body up to 3.7 mm long for 39 segments.

Colour:
Transparent, pharynx brown.

Distribution:
Atlantic up to Mediterranean, English Channel and North Sea.

Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Annelida
Class Polychaeta
Order Phyllodocida
Superfamily Nereidoidea
Family Syllidae
Subfamily Exogoninae
Genus Brania
Species Brania pusilla

Status in World Register of Marine Species

Accepted name: Brania pusilla (Dujardin, 1851)

Scientific synonyms and common names

Exogone pusilla Dujardin, 1839
Grubea pusilla Fauvel, 1923
Brania pusilla Hartmann-Schröder, 1971

Gillandt, L., 1979. Zur Systematik, Autökologie und Biologie der Polychaeten des Helgoländer Felslitorals. Mitt. hamb. zool. Mus. Inst., 76: 19-73.

Hartmann-Schröder, G., 1996. Annelida, Borstenwürmer, Polychaeta. Tierwelt Deutschlands, 58: 1-648.

You can continue searching for Brania pusilla on one of these Web sites:

Fauna Europaea (animals) | IOPI (plants) | NCBI (genetic)

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