On the synonymy of Pherecardia lobata Horst

In my paper »Contributions towards the knowledge of the Annelida polychaeta, I: Amphinomidae” 1) I was the first to describe the genus Pherecardia, characterized by having a caruncle, composed of a median heart-shaped axis, that bears on each side several (7) folded lobes of a lamelliform shape and directed backward. A tuft of short cylindrical branchial filaments occurs on each body-ring and the bristles of the ventral fascicles are not bifurcated, but provided with a hooklike bend tip, whereas the dorsal ones are partly capillary, partly stout, with serrations, having the shape of an Y. It was based on a badly preserved specimen, of which the locality was unknown, but in 1902 Collin mentioned it in his »Verzeichniss der von Prof. Semon bei Amboina und Thursday Island gesammelten Polychäten” 2), however without giving any peculiarity about the specimen he examined. A year later 1903, Fischli published an account of the »Polychäten von Ternate”, collected by Kükenthal 1); among them he described and figured a new species, Amphinome sericata. characterized by the presence of a caruncle consisting of a median axis and 8 lateral folded lamellae, whereas the dorsal bristle-fascicle shows the particular harpoon-like setae above referred to. It appears to me to be without doubt, that this worm must be identified with my Pherecardia lobata, and I cannot very well understand how the author could range this annelid in the genus Amphinome, that has a small, faintly developed caruncle and branchiae which only commence on the 3rd or 4th segment.