| NIWA Guide to Polychaeta | Shore polychaetes | Pick shore group | Pick shore family | Shell polychaetes |
| Glyceridae | Family Glyceridae (blood worm)
Phyllodocida (Annelida: Polychaeta) |
||
| About Family Glyceridae polychaetes in New Zealand. | ||||
| How to recognise the family: | The glycerids, or blood worms, are cylindrical, very muscular and active large predators and detritivores living in sands and sandy muds. The very long, finely papillose proboscis with its group of four chitinous fangs at the tip, is vigorously protruded upon disturbance. Bites from large glycerids are to be avoided as a toxin may be present. The head terminates in a tapering cone with four tiny lobes at the tip. These structures are probably equivalent to the palps and antennae of other Phyllodocida. There are no other head appendages. Notochaetae are simple capillaries and neurochaetae are compound spinigers. An anal cirri pair is present. Glycerids unusually amongst polychaetes have an open blood circulatory system without major vessels. Most species in the family belong to the genus Glycera, and a few are separated off as Hemipodus. Adult size: To 350 mm long and 15 mm in diameter. Hemipodus tend to be small species. | |||
| How to recognise the New Zealand genera: | Parapodia have both notopodia and neuropodia in Glycera, or lack notopodia apart from the dorsal cirrus in Hemipodus. | |||
| Quick pick shore species: | The large, pallid pink Glycera ovigera Schmarda, 1861 is recognisable in life from the multiple branching of delicate retractile gills behind the mid-body parapodia. Prior New Zealand reports of Glycera americana Leidy, 1855 are most likely G. ovigera or other species. In Glycera lamelliformis McIntosh, 1885 the retractile parapodial gills are long and cylindrical. Otherwise the Glycera species are distinguished by a combination of the relative lengths of the parapodial lobes, the morphology of the proboscis papillae, and the structure of accessory supports called ailerons on the proboscis. These features can be either difficult to observe or subject to interpretation. Glycera tesselata Grube, 1863 has only long, slender, proboscis papillae. Hemipodus simplex (Grube, 1856) has flattened papillae and has been recorded widely. Glycerids rarely occur on rocky shores but pale Hemipodus species, probably Hemipodus simplex, occurs under intertidal stones in harbours. Glycera ovigera Diagnosis from key of Böggemann & Fiege, 2001. 1-1 Proboscidial papillae without terminal fingernail structure. 2-2 Two postchaetal lobes (in mid body). 7-2 Ailerons with interramal plate. 11-2 Proboscidial papillae with up to 3 ridges. 18-2 Postchaetal lobes of about same length (in mid body). 20-1 Prechaetal lobes of about same length. Branchiae retractile. 21-2 Postchaetal lobes both slender triangular. 23-1 Branchiae retractile, bush-like, dorsally on post side parapodial bases. 24-2. Proboscidial papillae with Y-shaped ridge in combination with 1-3 vertical ridges apically (americana has 2 ridges). Glycera lamelliformis Diagnosis from key of Böggemann & Fiege, 2001. 1-2 Proboscidial papillae with terminal fingernail structure. 26-1 Parapodia of mid-body with two slender triangular postchaetal lobes of about same length. 27-2 Proboscidial papillae with short stalk and without ridges on nail; ailerons with triangular base; blister-like branchiae dorsally on parapodial bases. Glycera benhami Diagnosis from key of Böggemann & Fiege, 2001. 1-1 Proboscidial papillae without terminal fingernail structure. 2-2 Two postchaetal lobes at least from parapodia of mid-body. 7-1 Ailerons with deeply incised base; both postchaetal lobes short, rounded; branchiae absent. 8-1 Prechaetal lobes of about same length; digitiform proboscidial papillae present. 9-1 Digitiform proboscidial papillae with straight, median, longitudinal ridge. 10-2 Digitiform proboscidial papillae with additional single terminal U-shaped ridge. | |||
| Possible misidentifications: | Goniadidae. | |||
| Distributions, lifestyle, and habitat: | Sands and sandy muds, and (less commonly) crevice-dwelling. Glycera ovigera is the commonest intertidal species. Glycera lamelliformis is subtidal. | |||
| Abundance: | Moderate. | |||
| Taxonomic note: | Other species reported in the New Zealand region were Glycera lamellipodia Knox, 1960, Glycera knoxi Kirkegaard, 1995, Hemipodus ellesmerensis Knox, 1960, Hemipodus digitifera Knox, 1960, all known from single specimens. Böggemann analysed Niwa collection and reported the fauna to be: Glycera benhami Böggemann and Fiege, 2001, Glycera capitata Örsted, 1842, Glycera knoxi Kirkegaard, 1995, Glycera lamelliformis McIntosh, 1885, Glycera lapidum Quatrefages, 1866, Glycera onomichiensis Izuka, 1912, Glycera ovigera Schmarda, 1861, Glycera russa Grube, 1870, Hemipodus simplex (Grube, 1857), Hemipodus australiensis Knox and Cameron, 1971. | |||
| References: | (Böggemann 2002) (Hilbig 1994a: p197-214, f6.1-6), (Kirkegaard 1995: p26, f13), (Knox 1960a: p134-136, f220-231), (Knox 1960c: p219-232, f1-27), (McIntosh 1885: p347-349, P42.9-10, 22a.11), (O'Connor 1987: p167-189, f1-16), (Schmarda 1861: p95, P30.239). (Full citations at Family pages literature cited list.) |
|||
| Species in the guide: | Rock Species: None for this family. | |||
| Sand Species: Glycera ovigera | ||||
| Shell Species: None for this family. | ||||
| Internet sources: |
GOOGLE Search | AlltheWeb Search | CISTI | CBIF BiOSC Gateway | GOBASE Molecular | GenBank | | |||
| Family in Ubio Taxonomic Name Server | PubMed | Scirus | Zoological Record | | ||||
|
Note: use the Back button of your browser to return to Shore 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. Last modified by G. Read, 25/07/2004 (dd/mm/yy) |