Table Of ContentPOLYCHAETES 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. Bapuji,
By implication, the eurytopic and the Project leader, “Bio-active substances from the
euryoecious nature of the species of Manayunkia marine organisms of Orissa coast”, for
should render them as effective tools not only to organising and giving an opportunity to
enquire into the nature ofadaptational physiology participate in the cruises and authorities of
butalsoto conductbio-assaystudieswithreference Regional College of Education, Bhubaneswar
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