Acta Ichthyologica et Piscatoria 21(S): 57-65, doi: 10.3750/AIP1991.21.S.07
Marenzelleria viridis (Verrill, 1873) (Polychaeta: Spionidae)-a new component of shallow water benthic community in the Southern Baltic
P. GruszkaCorresponding author: P. Gruszka © P. Gruszka. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Citation:
Gruszka P (1991) Marenzelleria viridis (Verrill, 1873) (Polychaeta: Spionidae)-a new component of shallow water benthic community in the Southern Baltic. Acta Ichthyologica et Piscatoria 21(S): 57-65. https://doi.org/10.3750/AIP1991.21.S.07 |  |
Abstract
The presence of e North American spionid polychaete, Marenzelleria viridis (Verrill, 1873) was revealed along Wolin Island shores (Pomeranian Bay) in 1988. The highest density (506 ind./m2, recorded in muddy sediments off the River Świna mouth, even exceeded that of Nereis diversicolor. Marenzelleria viridis was also abundant (more than 200 ind./m2 off Międzyzdroje and east of the River Dziwna mouth. The distribution of this mesohaline species points to its preference for finer sediments (muddy sand and mud). The worm has been reported from the North Sea estuaries since 1983. As there was no M. viridis in the Pomeranian Bay in 1984 in contrast to its quite wide distribution in 1988, it is suggested that the polychaete was introduced into Polish waters in 1985 or 1986. Its presence in the vicinity of large North Sea and Baltic harbours seems to indicate men mediated dispersal of the species in European waters.