A new species of pista malmgren, 1866 (Polychaeta, terebellidae) from the north-western mediterranean sea

Abstract

A new species of Terebellidae, Pista colini sp. n., has been identified from the harbour of Banyuls-sur-Mer, north-western Mediterranean Sea. This new species was found in very high densities, exclusively in gravelly sand deposited manually, and was not found in the original source habitat of the gravel. This species is characterized by the colour of the ventral shields with pinkish anterior part and a blood red posterior part in live specimens, a pair of unequal-sized plumose branchiae inserted on segment II and anterior thoracic neuropodia with long-handled uncini. The presence of long-handled uncini even in the smallest specimens constitutes the major difference between Pista colini sp. n. and other Pista species with a single pair of branchiae such as P. lornensis and P. bansei.