Deep-Sea taxon details
Maea Johnston, 1865
325168 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:325168)
accepted
Genus
- Species Maea riojai (Jones, 1963)
marine, brackish, fresh, terrestrial
recent only
feminine
Johnston, G. (1865). A catalogue of the British non-parasitical worms in the collection of the British Museum. <em>[book].</em> 1-365. British Museum. London. [See also separate entry for Baird supplement]., available online at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/12291
page(s): 278 [details]
page(s): 278 [details]
Etymology Fiege et al (2000: 222) suggested Maea was named after a "classical city" in Çanakkale Bogazi, Turkey. However, it is more...
Taxonomy Müller (1858) introduced the name Magelona papillicornis for a shovel head worm species from the Island of St. Catherine...
Etymology Fiege et al (2000: 222) suggested Maea was named after a "classical city" in Çanakkale Bogazi, Turkey. However, it is more likely simply derived from a classical Greek female name. For instance in mythology Maea was the name of a daughter of Atlas, leader of the Titan gods. [details]
Taxonomy Müller (1858) introduced the name Magelona papillicornis for a shovel head worm species from the Island of St. Catherine...
Taxonomy Müller (1858) introduced the name Magelona papillicornis for a shovel head worm species from the Island of St. Catherine off Brazil. Whereas Johnston (1865) tentatively placed his similar worm he called Maea mirabilis from UK in "?Maeadae". Johnston's work (a book) was prepared earlier than Müller's but Müller's publication and thus his genus Magelona was first in priority and Johnston's Maea genus name became disused. Recent work by Mortimer et al (2026) regards Maea as distinct from Magelona. [details]
Read, G.; Fauchald, K. (Ed.) (2026). World Polychaeta Database. Maea Johnston, 1865. Accessed through: Glover, A.G.; Higgs, N.; Horton, T. (2026) World Register of Deep-Sea species (WoRDSS) at: https://www.marinespecies.org/deepsea/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=325168 on 2026-05-16
Glover, A.G.; Higgs, N.; Horton, T. (2026). World Register of Deep-Sea species (WoRDSS). Maea Johnston, 1865. Accessed at: https://marinespecies.org/Deepsea/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=325168 on 2026-05-16
Date
action
by
original description
Johnston, G. (1865). A catalogue of the British non-parasitical worms in the collection of the British Museum. <em>[book].</em> 1-365. British Museum. London. [See also separate entry for Baird supplement]., available online at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/12291
page(s): 278 [details]
redescription Mortimer, Kate; Mills, Kimberley; Robertson, Craig M. (2026). Magelonidae Cunningham & Ramage, 1888 (Annelida, Polychaeta)—Worldwide Identification Keys and the Re-Establishment of Maea Johnston, 1865. <em>Taxonomy (MDPI).</em> 6(1: 17): 1-60., available online at https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6500/6/1/17
page(s): 13-14 [of 60]; note: re-validation of genus from synonymy under genus Magelona [details] Available for editors
page(s): 278 [details]
redescription Mortimer, Kate; Mills, Kimberley; Robertson, Craig M. (2026). Magelonidae Cunningham & Ramage, 1888 (Annelida, Polychaeta)—Worldwide Identification Keys and the Re-Establishment of Maea Johnston, 1865. <em>Taxonomy (MDPI).</em> 6(1: 17): 1-60., available online at https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6500/6/1/17
page(s): 13-14 [of 60]; note: re-validation of genus from synonymy under genus Magelona [details] Available for editors
From editor or global species database
Diagnosis (from Mortimer et al. 2026) Body long and moderately slender; divided into a head region (prostomium and peristomium), achaetous region, thorax of nine chaetigers, and an abdomen of numerous chaetigers. Long, dorsoventrally flattened prostomium, rounded without prostomial horns, anterior margin smooth. Two pairs of longitudinal prostomial ridges surrounded by distinct prostomial markings. Pair of long, papillose palps inserted ventrolaterally at posterior margin of the prostomium, on either side of the mouth. Parapodia biramous, those of the thorax bearing foliaceous notopodial lamellae in a postchaetal position, margins of which may be smooth, crenulate, pectinate or bi-lobed. Superior dorsal lobes may be entirely absent, present on chaetigers 1–8 or absent from anterior thorax. Thoracic neuropodial lamellae generally more slender; prechaetal, subchaetal or postchaetal in position. An additional neuropodial lobe may be present on thoracic chaetigers. Lamellae of chaetiger nine shorter than preceding chaetigers, margins of which may be smooth or crenulate, but without superior dorsal lobes. Abdominal parapodia biramous, generally spatulate with a slight basal constriction. Triangular processes at the end of chaetal rows absent or present. Postchaetal expansion of lamellae posterior to chaetal rows absent or present. Thoracic chaetigers with limbate capillary chaetae only; those of chaetiger nine mucronate. Abdominal chaetae hooded hooks of a similar size, bi- or tridentate; unidirectional or vis-à-vis. Lateral abdominal pouches present; anteriorly and posteriorly open, or the latter form only. Pygidium with two anal cirri [details]Etymology Fiege et al (2000: 222) suggested Maea was named after a "classical city" in Çanakkale Bogazi, Turkey. However, it is more likely simply derived from a classical Greek female name. For instance in mythology Maea was the name of a daughter of Atlas, leader of the Titan gods. [details]
Grammatical gender Unstated but is feminine as Maea is a Greek-origin female name [details]
Taxonomy Müller (1858) introduced the name Magelona papillicornis for a shovel head worm species from the Island of St. Catherine off Brazil. Whereas Johnston (1865) tentatively placed his similar worm he called Maea mirabilis from UK in "?Maeadae". Johnston's work (a book) was prepared earlier than Müller's but Müller's publication and thus his genus Magelona was first in priority and Johnston's Maea genus name became disused. Recent work by Mortimer et al (2026) regards Maea as distinct from Magelona. [details]
Validity Mortimer et al (2026) re-validated Maea Johnston, 1865, previously regarded as not separate from Magelona. According to these authors Maea is distinct for possessing long rounded prostomia without horns, but possessing mucronate chaetae of the ninth chaetiger, and lateral abdominal pouches. They created fifteen new combinations for the transfer of species into Maea based on a morphology-based analysis published earlier (Mortimer et al 2021). A molecular analysis is not yet available. [details]
