Association between deep-water scale-worms (Annelida: Polynoidae) and black corals (Cnidaria: Antipatharia) in the Southwestern Atlantic

By

Assis, José Eriberto de
Souza, José Roberto Botelho de
Lima, Manuela
Lima, Gislaine
Cordeiro, Ralf
Pérez, Carlos

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2019-6-18

Original Publication

Nature conservation

Volume

36

Pages

1--13

Subjects

Brazil , Hexacorallia , polynoids , South America , Symbiosis

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers 2012-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zoologia.36.e28714

 

Abstract

Polynoid scale-worms have been found living as commensals with deep-water antipatharians (commonly known as black corals) in the Potiguar Basin, off Rio Grande do Norte State, Northeastern Brazil. In this paper two polychaete species and four black corals species are redescribed. Benhamipolynoecf.antipathicola and Parahololepidellacf.greeffi, and the black coral Stylopathesadinocrada Opresko, 2006 are recorded for the Southwestern Atlantic. Benhamipolynoecf.antipathicola was first described from off New Zealand and the Malay Archipelago, as symbiont with the black coral Stylopathestenuispina (Silberfeld, 1909). It was later reported for the North Atlantic, off Florida, associated with Stylopathescolumnaris (Duchassaing, 1870). In our study, B.cf.antipathicola was found in association with the black coral S.adinocrada. Parahololepidellacf.greeffi was first described as a free-living from shallow waters off São Tomé and Cabo Verde Islands, West Africa, and later reported as symbiont with the black coral Tanacetipathescf.spinescens in the same location. Our data expand both the geographical distribution and the host range of this species which is reported for the first time as symbiont with Tanacetipathesbarbadensis (Brook, 1889), T.tanacetum (Pourtalès, 1880) and T.thamnea (Warner, 1981) in Brazil. The aim of this study is to discuss commensal associations between two species of scale-worm polynoids and black corals found in the Southwestern Atlantic, and also reporting their global distribution. Finally, we provided an updated list of the commensal polynoids and their black coral hosts.