NEREIDIFORMIA. 



481 



Arabella Gr. ; Lumbriconereis Gr. prestomium conical without tentacles and 

 palps ; Drilonereis Clp. ; Notocirrus Schm. ; Laranda Kinb. ; Ophryotrocha 

 Clp. and Meczn., with segmental ciliated rings. 



Fam. 14. Eunicidae. Elongated body, with numerous segments. Prestomium 

 distinct and projecting, with 3 or 5 tentacles, or with 5 tentacles and 2 palps, 

 or without appendages ; usually with eyes. The first (peristomium) or the 

 two first segments without parapodia, but they may have cirri. In Eunice 

 and Diopatra the second segment has a dorsal cirrus the nuchal cirrus. 

 Parapodia uniramous, rarely biramous, with ventral cirri and branchiae (the 

 so-called dorsal cirrus contains an aciculum, and is the reduced notopodium). 

 Usually 4 cirri below the anus. An upper jaw formed of several pieces, 

 and a lower jaw of 2 lamellae are placed in a pocket attached below the oeso- 

 phagus (Fig. 393). In most genera there are parchment-like tubes. Diopatra 



FIG. 391. Head and anterior body segments of Nereis dumerilii (after Claparede). eyes ; 

 P palps ; Ct tentacular cirri ; K pharyngeal jaws. 



And. and Edw. ; Eunice Cuv. , 5 tentacles, 2 palps, and 2 nuchal cirri ; 

 Marphysa Qtf., like Eunice, but without nuchal cirri ; Hyalinoecia Malmg., 

 5 tentacles, 2 palps, 2 frontal palps, no nuchal cirri ; Onuphis Aud. and Edw. ; 

 Nicidion Kinb.; Macduffia Mclnt. ; Lysidice Sav., 3 tentacles, 2 palps, no 

 gills ; Nematonereis Schmarda, one tentacle ; Palola Gray, 3 tentacles. A 

 species of this worm lives in fissures in the coral-reefs of certain parts of 

 the Pacific (Samoa, Fiji). Twice in every year once in October and once 

 in November these worms swarm out to the surface of the sea in enormous 

 numbers to spawn, and are caught by the natives for food. In each of 

 these months the worms appear on two successive days, viz., at dawn on 

 the day on which the moon is in her last quarter and at dawn on the day 

 before (vide S. J. Whitmee, "On the habits of Palola viridis," Proc. Zool. Soc., 



9 T 



