Wirén, 1883

Description:
Body slender and slightly flattened.
Prostomium rounded triangular, anteriorly broad, with four eyes and a caruncle reaching the posterior margin of chaetiger 2.
Notopodial postchaetal lobes of the first chaetiger fused to the upper margin of the first segment. Following notopodial postchaetal lobes triangular, posteriorly becoming shorter, connected by a kind of collar across the dorsum from segment 10-11 to almost the posterior end. Neuropodial postchaetal lobes on segment 2 with a clearly down-ward curved tip; on other segments, they are rectangular, posteriorly more rounded and short (P. cirrifera-parapodium).
Anterior segments, only with capillaries on noto- and neuropodia. Neuropodia with sabre-like chaetae from segment 10 and hooks from segment 10-17. Notopodia with hooks from segment 18-48. In mid-body, 4 hooks on each notopodium and 10 in each neuropodium. Hooks with a main tooth and 2 rows of 5-6 small teeth (P. cirrifera-chaetae).
Six to eight pairs of ciliated gills, starting at chaetiger 2. The 1st and 6th pair long, and cirriform; other pairs of gills shorter, almost triangular and with a long tips.
Pygidium with one long and two short cirri.

Size:
Up to 30 mm for 78 segments.

Colour:
Yellowish.

Habitat:
On mud, from upper sublittoral to 4165 m.

Distribution:
Arctic, northern North Sea to Kattegat.

Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Annelida
Class Polychaeta
Order Spionida
Family Spionidae
Genus Prionospio
Species Prionospio cirrifera

Status in World Register of Marine Species

Accepted name: Prionospio cirrifera Wirén, 1883

Scientific synonyms and common names

Prionospio cirrifera Wirén, 1883

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

Kirkegaard, J.B., 1996. Havbørsteorme II. Danmarks Fauna, 86: 1-451.

Maciolek, N.J., 1985. A revision of the genus Prionospio Malmgren, with special emphasis on the species from the Atlantic Ocean, and new records of species belonging to the genera Apoprionospio Foster and Paraprionospio Caullery (Polychaeta, Annelida, Spionidae). Zool. J. Linn. Soc., 84: 325-383.

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