POLYCHAETES OFTHEGENUS MANAYUNKIA LEIDY (POLYCHAETA:SABELLIDAE) FROMEASTCOASTOFINDIA (BAY OFBENGAL) 1 A.L.N. Sarma2 K.R. Raju3 and V. Wilsamamd2 , (With eleven text-figures) Keywords: polychaeta, Sabellidae,Manayunkia zoogeography, migration, budding , Thepresentcommunication redescribesManayunkiaspongicolaandgivesasynopsisoffourundetermined speciesofManayunkia,inhabitingflocculentsoftdetritus-ladencoralskeletonsofTubastraeaaureaofftheOrissa coast, atadepthof12 metres. Indicationofreproductionbybudding isreported. Zoogeography ofthe known speciesofManayunkiaandtheirprobablemigrationfrommarinetobrackishandfreshwatersarediscussed.The impactofaphytalbiotaonthedistributionofbenthicfaunalcommunities'isalsodiscussed.Thepossibleutilityof Manayunkiainaquaculturalpracticesisindicated. Introduction specimensappeartorepresentaspeciescomplexof the genus and do not belong to a single species. The genus Manayunkia consists oftubicolous However, a goodnumber ofspecimens excellently micro-annelid sabellids, essentially known from confirmed with M. spongicola described from fresh water environs like rivers, lakes of North Chilkalagoon sevendecadesago (Southern 1921). America(Leidy 1883,Foster 1972, Holmquist1973, In view ofthe characters, namely thenature ofthe Poeand Stefan 1974, Spencer 1976) and estuarine branchiae,cephaliceyespots,segmentallengthand and coastal brackish waters of Western Europe thepresenceorabsenceofcaudaleyes(oftenoneor (Muus 1967, Green 1968, Remane 1971, Barnes two characters only), considered for the specific 1976).Manayunkia is also known from the Congo determination by the earlier taxonomists, the River, West Africa; Brasilian mangroves; Danube specimenscouldnotbesatisfactorilyidentifiedwith RiverandNorth Japan Sea vide Hartman 1959). anyoftheknownspeciesofthegenus,andcouldbe ( FromIndianWaters, sofaronlyasinglespecies, new to science. However, since intraspecific M. spongicola inhabiting tubes embedded in the variation(withinandamongstthecharacters)ofthe spongeLaxosuberiteslacustrisandamongthealgae members of the genus are not known, new underrocks in the littoral region ofChilka lagoon description and erection of new species is not A wasdescribedbySouthern (1921). perusal ofthe resorted to as identifications based on a single or publishedliteraturerevealsnosubsequentreporting two characters would invariably lead to ofManayunkia from the Indian aquatic (marine, abandonmentofthespeciessoonerorlater.Further, brackish,freshwater)systemsexceptingforitsbeing Mayer(1971) stated“Intraspecificmorphsareoften listed among the phytal fauna ofChilka lagoon by far more different from each other than sibling Satapathy (1985).In thepresentsystematicstudies, species” (p. 81). a large number ofspecimens ofManayunkia have Assuch,abriefdescriptionoftherediscovered been recovered from the meiofauna of the coral M. spongicolawithremarkson thepresentfindsis skeletal washings of Tubastraea aurea laden with presentedherealongwithasynopsisoftheobserved fine flocculentmud at adepth of 12 metres offthe charactersoftheundeterminedspeciesathand.The coastofGopalpur, Orissa (19° 14' to20° 2* N; 84° systematic and ecological importance of 5Fto85°2’E).Theywerefoundinhabitingdelicate Manayunkia is also discussed. membranoustubescoveredwithflocculentmud.The Material and Methods AcceptedJune1992. 2P.G.Dept,ofLifeSciences,RegionalCollegeofEducation, Aphytal communities of sponges Petprosia Bhubaneswar751 001,Orissa. ( 3RegionalResearchLaboratory,Bhubaneswar,Orissa. testudinaria, Aurora globostellata, Fasciospongia POLYCHAETESOFTHEGENUS MANAYUNKIA 421 cavernosa, Spongia officinalis, Phakellia dendyi), Manayunkia spongicola Southern, 1921 skeletons of corals Cladangia exusta Cyathelia (Figs. 1-5) ( , auxillaris, Dendrophyllia arbuscula, Tubastraea aurea andgorgonians Echinogorgiacomplexa,E. Locality: Numerousspecimensassociatedwith ) ( reticulata, Gorgonella umbraculum G. thecoral. Tubastraea aurea offtheGopalpur coast , sanguinolenta, Muricella complanata) were atadepth of 12metres. collectedfromadepth of12metres offthecoastof Material: In ourcollection in theDepartment Gopalpur, Orissa, employing SCUBA diving. The of Life Sciences, Regional College of Education, different aphytal colonies brought on to the board Bhubaneswar. of the vessel were transferred separately to large Description: The specimens varied in length polythenecontainerswith4%formalin solutionand from 0.4mm to 2 mm; branchial region measured brought to the laboratory. The contents ofeach of 0.06 mm to 0.6 mm; thoracic region 0.27 mm to thepolythenecontainerswerepouredinto separate 1.6 mm and abdomen 0.09 to 0.25 mm. Body polythene tubs and thoroughly washed in 4% cylindrical. Head conical infront bearing 2 black formalin solution to dislodge the epifauna. Later, eyes.Twoshortclavatepalpsorprostomialtentacles. the coral skeletons and sponges were broken into A prominent well developedcollar which is entire small pieces and placed in petri dishes and and convex ventrally. Nootocysts. Thorax consists thoroughlysearchedfortheepibiontsandendobionts of8 segments. Thefirstthree segmentsbehindthe under stereoscopic binocular microscope. Each of collar are short and the succeeding segments the residues left in the polythene tubs was sieved gradually increaseup to 8th segment, which is the separately with 500 p and60 p sieves. Theresidue largestofthebody.Thoracicsegmentsbearcapillary left on the 500 p sieve was considered for setae with short flattened blade and long slender macrofauna and that on 60 p sieve formeiofaunal tips (Fig.2). Ventralhooks stoutwith 3 teeth above studies. themainfang(Fig.3).Threeabdominalneurosetae with 1-2 capillary setae (Fig. 4). Notopodia 9-11 Results hooks with numerous long fine teeth (Fig. 5) in severalrows atone end. Firstand lastsegments of SYSTEMATICS thebodydevoidofsetae;pygidiumspatulateorpear- shapedbearing2blackeyespots.Tubemembranous GenusManayunkiaLeidy, 1859 coveredwith flocculentmud. Circulatory systemis well developed and whole body is coloured by the Haplobranchus Bourne, 1883; Dybowscella bright green chlorocruorin oftheblood. Nusbaum, 1901; Garjaiewella Dybowski, 1929. Distribution: Chilkalake: Gopalpurcoast(Bay (vide Hartman 1959). ofBengal), India. Cylindrical body; unbranched symmetrical Remarks: Alargesizedlateralswellingonthe branchial lobes; no branchial radicles with 5th trunk segment was noted (Figs. 6,7). This cartilagenous axis and lateral pinnules; two short appears to be an indication that these polychaetes clavateprocesses, ‘thepalps’ ofprostomialtentacles also reproduceby budding. Leidy (1883) observed within thecircleofthebranchiae; awelldeveloped inM. speciosathatthe developmentis directanda entirecollar;withorwithoutthecaudaleyes;dorsal freeswimmingtrochophorelarvaisabsent.Pennak thoracic setae; uncini with a long stalk; pick-axe (1978) commented on the large size and lateral shapedsetaeabsent;abdominaluncinielongatedand swellings ofthe 6th trunk segment ofM. speciosa ventral capillary setae. as anindication ofreproductionbybudding. Type species: Manayunkia speciosa Leidy, A brief synospsis ofthe distinct characters of 1859. the undetermined species is givenbelow. 422 JOURNAL,BOMBAYNATURALHIST.SOCIETY, Vol.91(1994) U 110 Figs. 1-11.ManayunkiaspongicolaSouthern 1.Entireanimal,dorsalview;2.Thoraciccapillarysetae;3.Thoraciccrochet; 4.Abdominalcapillarysetae;5.Abdominalcrochet; 6.M.spongicolashowingbudon5thtrunksegmentandevertedproboscisoncephalicregion;7.Enlargedviewof5thsegment showingbud;8.M.sp.showinglongandshorttentacles;9.M.sp.showingshortandblunttentacles;10.M.sp.showing4eye-spotson cephalicregion;11.M.sp.showing3eye-spotsoncephalicregion. POLYCHAETESOFTHEGENUS MANAYUNKIA 423 Manayunkia sp. 1: Typically characterised by subtropical latitudes (Table 1). M. speciosa M. , simple,unbranchedbranchiaeoftwokinds,namely eriensis from the American river systems; M. 1)shortandblunt(clubshaped);2)longandslender aestuarina; M. caspia; M. baltica; M. baicalensis (Fig. 8). Themorphological details ofhead, collar, from the fresh water, coastal lagoon and estuarine thoracic and abdominal setae and uncini and localesofEurope;M.pacifica fromBering seaand pygidium are similarto thoseofM. spongicola. Western Canada; M. polaris from North Western Manayunkia sp. 2: Presence of six simple, Russia; M. siaukhu from North Japan Sea; M. unbranched short andblunt (digitiform)branchiae cifricana from Congo River; M. brasiliensis from is the distinguishing feature (Fig. 9). Body mangrovesofBrazilandM. spongicolafromChilka comprisedof13thoracicand3 abdominalsetigerous lagoon ofIndiaareknown. segments. Seventh, eighth and ninth thoracic Theapparentlowspeciation ofManayunkiain segments relatively larger than the rest of the tropics and subtropics in general, and the Indian segments.Thenatureofshape,sizeandarrangement Ocean in particular, reflects lack of intensive ofthe thoracic and abdominal setae and uncini as faunistic searches for these interesting micro- inM. spongicola. sabellids in theselocales. Manayunkiasp. 3: Characterisedby4eye-spots Ecologicallythe genus is eurytopicand oneof on thecephalicregion (Fig. 10) and 2eye-spotson theveryfeweuryhalinepolychaetememberswhich thepygidium. Themorphologicalfeaturesofgeneral presumably have surmounted the physiological body including head, collar, branchiae, thorax, adjustments necessary for the marine - brackish- abdomen and pygidium are similar to those ofM. fresh water transition. spongicola. Green (1968) opined, considering the ability Manayunkiasp.4: Thedistinguishingcharacter of M. aestuarina to tolerate low salinities (2%°), is thepresence of3 eye-spots on thehead (Fig. 11) thatthegenusmighthaveprobablypenetratedinto and 2 eye-spots on the pygidium while the rest of freshwaterwithitsrepresentativeslikeM. speciosa the body morphology conforms with those of M. knownfromseveralriversofPhiladelphiaandfrom spongicola. Great Lakes. While discussing the probability of marine origin ofManayunkia, it is worth quoting Discussion Remane (1971, p. 148) who stated that “High percentage of the pontocaspian relicts of marine Taxonomically the genera Manayunkia and origin have succeeded in invading fresh water, at Fabriciapresentinterdigitatingcharacters.Boththe least the lower reaches of the river, e.g. the genera sharethefollowing characters: 1. Thebody polychaetesHypaniainvalida Manayunkiacaspia , consists of 11 setigerous segments, ofwhich 8 are Lagoonal biotopes/substrates rich in detritus are thoracicand3 abdominal.2.Thedorsalandventral stated to be congenial for the densities of M. setaeonthethoracicsegmentsaresimilarin shape. aestuarina (Remane1971,p. 165).Theeuryoecious 3. Elongatecrochetsin theabdominal segments. 4. nature of Manayunkia and the abundance of M. The first segment bears eyes. 5. Otocysts absent. aestuarinaupto20,000individualspersquaremetre However, Manayunkia differs from Fabricia in was reportedbyMuus (1967) in his studies on the having a well developed collar and simple, lagoons of Denmark. Of late, the occurrence of unbranchedbranchiae. Thegenusisarareexception Manayunkia from soft detritus in a fully marine among sabellids in the sensethebranchialradioles condition is also known (Barnes 1976, p. 18). The aredevoidofacartilaginousaxisandlateralpinnules presentfindingfromtypicalmarinelocationfurther (Day 1967). Zoogeographically, the genus appears validatestheeuryoecious natureofManayunkia. tobewellspeciatedanddistributedinthetemperate, In view ofthepredominantly softdetritusrich warm temperate latitudes than in the tropical and biotopes or substrata inhabitation ofManayunkia 424 JOURNAL,BOMBAYNATURAL HIST.SOCIETY, Vol91(1994) Table 1 ZOOGEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTIONOF SPECIES OFMANAYUNKIA Nameofspecies Locality Author Manayunkiaaestuarina ThamesEstuary,England;estuariesof Bourne(1883);Green(1968); Muss(1967). WesternEurope;lagoonscfDenmark. M.africana RiverCongo,Africa. Monro(1939)(videHartman, 1959). M. baicalensis LakeBaikal;riversystemsofSiberia. Nusbaum(1901) (videHartman, 1959), Green(1968). M.baicalensishydani LakeBaikal. Slastnikov(1942)(videHartman, 1959). M. baltica BalticSea. Karling(1933)(videHartman, 1959). M. brasiliensis Estuarinemangroves,Brazil. Banse(1956) M. caspia CaspianSea;BlackSeas. Annenkova(1928)(vide,Hartman, 1959), Green(1968). M. caspiafluviatilis DanubeRiver,Romania. Bacesco(1949)(videHartman, 1959). M. eriensis LakeErie,Ohio. Krecker(1939)(videPennak, 1978). M.pacifica BeringSea. Annenkova(1934)(videHartman, 1959). M.polaris BeringSea,Murmancoast,Russia. Zenkevitch(1935)(videHartman, 1959). M.siaukhn NorthJapanSea. Annenkova(1938)(videHartman, 1959). M.speciosa SchuylkillRiver,Philadelphia; Leidy(1859);Pennak(1978); SoutheasternPennsylvania; Holmquist(1973);Spencer(1976). NewJersey;GreatLakes; Alaska;CayugaLake,NewYork; California;Carolina;Georgia. M.spongicola ChilkaLake,India(embeddedinsponge Southern(1921). Laxosuberitesandamongalgaeunderrocks). Gopalpur,OrissaCoast(BayofBengal), Presentauthors. atadepthof12metres. M.sp.1 Gopalpur,OrissaCoast(BayofBengal), Presentauthors. atadepthof12metres. M.sp.2 Gopalpur,OrissaCoast(BayofBengal), Presentauthors. atadepthof12metres. M.sp.3 Gopalpur,OrissaCoast(BayofBengal), Presentauthors. atadepthof12metres. M.sp.4 Gopalpur,OrissaCoast(BayofBengal), Presentauthors. atadepthof12metres. : POLYCHAETESOFTHEGENUS MANAYUNKIA 425 in variousAmericanriversandlakes;brackishand to aquatic pollutants. Their mass cultivation in estuarine environs ofWestern Europe as indicated laboratory conditions could also be resorted to above, theoccurrence ofM. spongicola among the produceprotein-richviablefeedforfinfishandshell spongeLaxosuberiteslacustrisandamongthealgae fishes in aquacultural practices. The known direct underrocks from Chilka Lake and coral skeletons development strategy of reproduction adopted by in the presentstudy isattributed tothe presenceof Manayunkia withoutafreeswimming trochophore richsoftdetritusdepositionontheaphytalsystems. larva, besides its probable ability to reproduce Further, the physiognomy of the non- asexually by budding, should further enhance the sedimentary biota like phytal (algal thickets) and potentialofthismicro-annelidformasscultivation aphytal (sessile animal growth ofsponges, corals, tobeusedasfishfood. Studiesaimedatdetermining bryozoans, gorgoniansetc.)besidesthequalityand itsnutritivevaluewouldprobablygo alongwayto quantity of sediment deposited on them were renderitanefficientandeconomicfeedforcultivable reported dictating patterns of distribution and prawns andfishes. abundance oforganismic communities among the benthic biota (Dahl 1948, Wieser 1952, 1959; Acknowledgements Hagerman1966, Sarma1972, 1974a, 1974b, 1974c; Sarma and Ganapati 1972, 1975; Sarma and We thank the Director, Regional Research Gopalswamy 1975, Sarma and Satapathy 1978, Laboratory, Bhubaneswar for financial Sarmaetal. 1979, 1981). assistanceto oneofus (K.R.R.); Dr. M. 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