Travisia sanrikuensis, a New Species of Travisiidae (Annelida) from the Lower Bathyal Zone of the Northwestern Pacific

Abstract

A new species of the genus Travisia Johnson, 1840, the single genus of the family Travisiidae, is described. Specimens of Travisia sanrikuensis sp. nov. were collected in the Sanriku region, Japan, from the lower bathyal zone (871–1684 m depth) of the northwestern Pacific. Molecular phylogenetic analysis based on partial 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that the new species is phylogenetically close to Travisia brevis Moore, 1923, but differs from all congeneric species by the following morphological characters: 25 segments, 20 chaetigers, and 19–20 pairs of cirriform branchiae starting from chaetiger 2.