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Nereididae
Natural History
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The range of habitats occupied by nereidids is probably as great as for any other polychaete family - not only do they occur from shallow marine and estuarine habitats to the deep sea, but members of the subfamily Namanereinae can also be found in freshwaters including specialised habitats such as water-filled tree hollows in tropical forests. In most of these habitats nereidids are extremely common. They range in size from a few mm to several cms in length. Within Australia, Australonereis, Olganereis and Simplisetia (formerly Ceratonereis sensu lato) are the principal estuarine genera. In fully marine environments, species of Ceratonereis sensu stricto, Neanthes and Nereis occur on soft sediments, while Perinereis, Platynereis and Pseudonereis are more common on shallow rocky reefs and similar hard substrates.
Modes of feeding are similarly diverse within nereidids: carnivores, herbivores, surface detritus feeders, omnivores and even suspension feeders (using a mucus net) are known. Feeding behaviour can vary even within and between populations of a single species.
Diversity
The Nereididae comprises about 39 genera and
535 species world wide. In Australia there have been a number of taxonomic studies of Nereididae and at least 17 genera and 70 species are known from Australian waters.
Description | Identification
tips | Natural History | Diversity
| Checklist | References
| Interactive Key
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