SIPUNCULANS (SIPUNCULA) FROM THE GREAT CARIBBEAN: SPECIES LIST AND BIBLIOGRAPHY

Abstract

Sipunculans, or “peanut worms”, are marine invertebrates with high importance in rock dissolution processes, and because they are an important source of food for other marine species. A search of all literature about recorded families, genera and species for the Grand Caribbean was done. The region comprises between the limits from South Carolina, in the United States, to the Northern littoral of Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico, Major and Lesser Antilles, as well as Center and South American coasts. The revision includes as much published information as possible, both electronically and in hard copy, and was organized and listed in alphabetical and not phylogenetic order. Species that are not from the region where differentiated such as synonymies, in order to offer an idea about the taxonomic problems that the group has. 84 specie names where found, divided into 14 genera and 6 families. From the 84 names that where found, only 23 names correspond to valid species; 10 out of the 84 names that where found do not have suffiient information. In these terms, the group is organized through the standardized and systematic preliminary order. It is expected that this list becomes an important source of knowledge for sipunculans in the Caribbean and other close regions.