''Verrucapelma'' is a genus of marine

annelids The annelids (), also known as the segmented worms, are animals that comprise the phylum Annelida (; ). The phylum contains over 22,000 extant species, including ragworms, earthworms, and leeches. The species exist in and have adapted to vario ...

in the family

Polynoidae Polynoidae is a family (biology), family of marine Polychaete worms known as "scale worms" due to the scale-like elytron (Annelida), elytra on the dorsal surface. Almost 900 species are currently recognised belonging to 9 subfamilies and 167 gen ...

(scale worms). ''Verrucapelma'' contains three species which are known from shallow water down to a depth of about 90 m. All three species occur in the

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

region, in the

Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down t ...

, northern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and the Indonesian archipelago.Hanley, J. R.; Burke, M. (1991). Polychaeta Polynoidae: Scaleworms of the Chesterfield Islands and Fairway Reefs, Coral Sea. in: Crosnier, A. Résultats des Campagnes MUSORSTOM 8. Mémoires du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle. Série A, Zoologie. 151: 9-82

Description

Species of ''Verrucapelma'' are short-bodied scale worms with 30 to about 39 segments and 15 pairs of

elytra An elytron (; ; : elytra, ) is a modified, hardened forewing of beetles (Coleoptera), though a few of the true bugs (Hemiptera) such as the family Schizopteridae are extremely similar; in true bugs, the forewings are called hemelytra (sometime ...

, the margins of which have a fringe of papillae. The

prostomium The prostomium (From Ancient Greek, meaning "before the mouth"; : prostomia; sometimes also called the "acron") is the Cephalization, cephalized first body segment in an annelid worm's body at the anterior end. It is in front of (but does not in ...

is bilobed anteriorly and has a pair of cephalic peaks. The lateral antennae are located ventrally, directly beneath the median antenna and the distal part of the antennae have slender papillae. The neuropodial lobe is elongate and tapering and has two or three distinctive wart-like tubercles along the ventral edge. The

notochaetae A chaeta or cheta (; ) is a chitinous bristle or seta found on annelid worms, although the term is also frequently used to describe similar structures in other invertebrates such as arthropods. Polychaete annelids (''polychaeta'' literally mean ...

are about as thick as the

neurochaetae A chaeta or cheta (; ) is a chitinous bristle or seta found on annelid worms, although the term is also frequently used to describe similar structures in other invertebrates such as arthropods. Polychaete annelids (''polychaeta'' literally mean ...

and both are ornamented with transverse rows of small spines. The notochaetae may be unidentate, or in one species, with notched tips, while the neurochaetae are all bidentate.

Species

As of September 2020, there are three species in ''Verrucapelma'': *'' Verrucapelma conifera'' Barnich, Sun & Fiege, 2004 *'' Verrucapelma nigricans'' (Horst, 1915) *'' Verrucapelma retusa'' Hanley & Burke, 1991

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3921283 Phyllodocida Polychaete genera