Morphology, Phylogeny, and Evolution of the Rarely Known Genus Admetella McIntosh, 1885 (Annelida, Polynoidae) with Recognition of Four New Species from Western Pacific Seamounts

Abstract

The polynoid genus Admetella constitutes a deep-sea assemblage of polychaetes, notable for their large bodies adorned with antennal scales positioned dorsally to the bases of lateral antennae. Furthermore, the genus exhibits swimming proficiencies facilitated by elongated parapodia and flattened chaetae. Despite the frequent encounters with Admetella members during various deep-sea explorations, a substantial gap in our comprehension of their diversity, phylogeny, and evolutionary trajectories still exists. Our thorough morphological and phylogenetic investigations of specimens obtained from three seamounts located in the tropical western Pacific have unveiled six species belonging to the genus Admetella, four of these being newly identified as Admetella multiseta sp. nov., A. levensteini sp. nov., A. nanhaiensis sp. nov., and A. undulata sp. nov. The other two species of Admetella remain unidentifiable at the species level due to the loss of crucial details. Our phylogenetic analysis, grounded on 13 mitochondrial protein-coding genes and the inclusion of 12S, 16S, 18S, 28S rRNA, and ITS1–ITS2 genes, substantiates the monophyly of Admetella. Admetella is positioned at an intermediate node within the phylogenetic tree, situated between representative shallow-water and deep-sea subfamilies. The independent evolution of antennal scales within Admetella among polynoids constitutes a synapomorphy for this genus. Ancestral state reconstruction (ASR) analyses suggest that deep-sea polynoids evolved from shallow-water ancestors that possessed lateral antennae, which were subsequently lost in members inhabiting extreme marine environments, such as deep-sea hydrothermal vents and anchialine caves. The analysis further implicates that swimming ability independently evolved at least four times within the Polynoidae family.