Nicolea Malmgren, 1866

Santos, Andre Souza Dos, Nogueira, João Miguel De Matos, Fukuda, Marcelo Veronesi & Christoffersen, Martin Lindsey, 2010, New terebellids (Polychaeta: Terebellidae) from northeastern Brazil, Zootaxa 2389 (1), pp. 1-46 : 24

Genus Nicolea Malmgren, 1866

Type species: Terebella zostericola Ørsted, 1844 , designated by Malmgren (1866).

Diagnosis. Terebellines with 2 pairs of branching branchiae, on segments 2–3. Lobes on anterior segments absent. Notopodia starting from segment 4, extending for 15–40 segments; notochaetae narrowly-winged. Neuropodia starting from segment 5, sessile on region with biramous parapodia, as raised pinnules after notopodia terminate; uncini short-handled throughout, arranged in completely intercalated double rows from segment 10–11 until segment on which notopodia terminate. Nephridial papillae on segment 3, genital papillae on segments 6–7, usually males with cylindrical, digitiform genital papillae, females with spherical papillae ( Hessle 1917; McHugh 1995; Nogueira 2008).

Remarks. Nicolea is a large genus, reported worldwide. The genus is conservative in regards to numbers of pairs of branchiae, morphology of notochaetae, arrangement of the double rows of uncini and the position of nephridial and genital papillae.

On the other hand, Nicolea exhibits variation in the number of pairs of notopodia, the segment on which the double rows of uncini begin, the morphology of genital papillae and the presence of secondary sexual dimorphism.

In Brazil, a single species of Nicolea has been reported prior to the present study, N. uspiana ( Nogueira, 2003) , from the state of São Paulo.