NIWA Guide to Polychaeta | Shore polychaetes | Shell polychaetes |
Shell worm Dodecaceria berkeleyi | Cirratulidae (cirratulid/sphagetti worm)
Terebellida (Annelida: Polychaeta) |
||
Dodecaceria berkeleyi Knox, 1971. Family Cirratulidae | ||||
Dodecaceria berkeleyi from Haliotis iris shell [Click photo for picture page] ![]() | ||||
Identification tips: | One pair of grooved palps alongside three pairs of long palp-like anterior branchia. Distinctive colour pattern(s) present; dark green to yellow. Parapodial lobes absent. | |||
Habitat: | Marine shelf. Known from mollusc shell. In gastropods. In self-created shell-borings, or in abandoned shell-borings. Recorded from living shells of New Zealand commercial shellfish: Atrina pectinata, Haliotis iris. Tube lining absent. Tube chimney absent. | |||
Nomenclature: | Genus Dodecaceria in Family Cirratulidae. Dodecaceria berkeleyi. Described by Knox, published in 1971, as Dodecaceria berkeleyi. Type locality: New Zealand, Kaiteriteri. Other synonyms: none recorded | |||
Description: | Head region: Three (3-4) pairs of annulated branchiate on first 3 segments with one pair of grooved palps on first segment (chaetae absent). Prostomium conical, without a caruncle. Colouration: Variable, ranging from light orange to dark green, palps green, branchiae red to orange. Branchiae, chaetae, and pygidium: Branchiae adjoining parapodia absent after segment three. Parapodial lobes absent. Eyes absent. First 8 chaetigers with capillary chaetae, absent on variable number of following chaetigers then present in post body. Spoon-tipped simple hooks present from 10th chaetiger in both notopodium and neuropodium. | |||
Dimensions: | Length 18 mm. Width 1 mm. Segment total 80. Palps short. | |||
Reproduction: | Dodecaceria berkeleyi reproduces asexually by fragmentation, as well as sexually with planktonic larvae. Head and tails regenerate and fragments regenerating heads and tails have been observed. | |||
Distribution: | Occurs only in New Zealand. Not known to be invasive or anthropochoric. Global distribution includes New Zealand mainland.. | |||
Remarks: | Also found on other gastropods such as Cookia sulcata. | |||
Biology: | Dodecaceria berkeleyi seems to be an opportunist species, taking over existing borings and extending them. Its ability to reproduce asexually means it can increase density rapidly from a founding individual. Feeding group: Surface deposit-feeding/herbivore. | |||
Best References: | Biology: Knox (1971) Dodecaceria berkeleyi n. sp., a polychaete (Family Cirrutulidae [sic]) from New Zealand.. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada 28:1437-1443 Taxonomy: Knox (1971) Dodecaceria berkeleyi n. sp., a polychaete (Family Cirrutulidae [sic]) from New Zealand. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada 28:1437-1443. | |||
More information: |
Synonyms, NZ records | Original figures | Original description details | |
Genus diagnosis | More pictures | Further references (biology, etc) | Family Cirratulidae | |
Internet sources: |
GOOGLE Search | AlltheWeb Search | CISTI | CBIF BiOSC Gateway | GOBASE Molecular | GenBank | Genus only in GenBank | | |||
Genus only in Ubio Taxonomic Name Server | PubMed | Scirus | Zoological Record | | ||||
Note: use the Back button of your browser to return to Shell Polychaete Guide. |
||||
The information provided by this page and by the pages of the "more information" links is held in a structured form for rapid and frequent updating and improvement. Descriptive text is compiled from a number of database fields, some of which may occasionally be empty. Data last edited 19/07/2004 (dd/mm/yy), and page last generated by G. Read, 25/07/2004 (dd/mm/yy) |