A polychaete worm (Melinna palmata)

Distribution data supplied by the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS). To interrogate UK data visit the NBN Atlas.Map Help

Summary

Description

Up to 55 cm in length, pale to brownish pink, blotched with red. Four pairs of gills (branchiae), arise from a curved base and are all visible from the rear. Gills appear greenish in colour, with brown bands. The snout bears around 12 smooth tentacles occurring at the dorsal base of the cephalic plate, leading to the mouth. The chaeta is broad, short, striated, and has a sharp hook at the tip making the neck appear at a right angle, similar to Melinna maculata. The dorsal collar is at the fourth bristled segment. The anterior hooks are arranged in a single row consisting of five teeth. The pygidium terminates in an anus with a diluted rim. Uncini with four teeth amongst the others with five in the thorax.

Recorded distribution in Britain and Ireland

Recorded in the English Channel to the North Atlantic Ocean. The highest density of records is on the west coast of Britain and Ireland, up to the northwest of Scotland. Sparse records in the Shetland Islands. Scattered records on the east coast of Britain, especially in the southeast.

Global distribution

Recorded in the North Sea off the coast of Belgium and Norway. Recorded on all coasts of France. Scattered records off the coast of Spain and in Portugal. Scattered records across the Mediterranean in Italy, Greece, Croatia, Egypt, and Tunisia. High occurrence of records in the Black Sea. Scattered records in the Gulf of Oman and off the coast of Saudi Arabia.

Habitat

Found in infralittoral sandy mud, in sheltered marine inlets, and occasionally coarser sediments.

Depth range

0- 150 m (occasionally up to 900 m)

Identifying features

  • Pale to brownish pink in colour
  • Four pairs of branchiae
  • Gills appear green with brown bands

Additional information

Similar in appearance to Melinna elisabethae. It can also be associated with other species like Magelona spp. and Thyasira flexuosa.

Listed by

- none -

Further information sources

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Bibliography

  1. De Kluijver, M.J., van Nieuwenhuijzen, A., Ingalsuo, S. & Veldhuijzen-Van Zanten, H., 2022. Macrobenthos of the North Sea - Polychaeta. Marine Species Identification Portal. ETI Bioinformatics. [cited 2022-06-09] Available from: http://species-identification.org/species.php?species_group=macrobenthos_polychaeta&menuentry=inleiding

  2. Fauchald, K., 1977. The polychaete worms. Definitions and keys to the orders, families and genera. USA: Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

  3. Hayward, P.J. & Ryland, J.S. (ed.) 2017. Handbook of the marine fauna of North-West Europe. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

  4. McIntosh, W.C., 1922–1923. A monograph of the British marine annelids. Volume 4. Part I: Hermellidae – Sabellidae. Part II: Sabellidae – Serpulidae. London: The Ray Society. 4(1), pp.1–368 (1922); 4(2), pp.369–538 (1923).

  5. Stachowitsch, M., 1992. The invertebrates: an illustrated glossary. USA: Wiley-Liss.

Datasets

  1. NBN (National Biodiversity Network) Atlas. Available from: https://www.nbnatlas.org.

  2. OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System),  2025. Global map of species distribution using gridded data. Available from: Ocean Biogeographic Information System. www.iobis.org. Accessed: 2025-05-29

Citation

This review can be cited as:

Maleed, M., 2025. Melinna palmata A polychaete worm. In Tyler-Walters H. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Reviews, [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 29-05-2025]. Available from: https://www.marlin.ac.uk/species/detail/2373

Last Updated: 22/05/2025