Neosabellaria vitiensis, n. sp. (Annelida: Polychaeta: Sabellariidae), from Shallow Water of Suva Harbor, Fiji1

A new species of the genus NeosabellariaKirtley, 1994, is described from shallow-water locations of Suva Harbor, Fiji. Neosabellaria vitiensis Bailey-Brock, Kirtley, Nishi, & Pohler, n. sp., is a gregarious sabellariid; its tubes are constructed of sand and shell debris and form small “reefs” exposed during low tides. The new species is distinguished by the structure of opercular paleae in the middle row, which are shoe-shaped with circular tips, and paleae in the outer row, which have distal lateral teeth and denticulate median plume. Detailed morphological features of the new species are described and compared with other Pacific sabellariid species, particularly with most closely related N. clandestina (Menon & Sareen, 1966). Neosabellaria vitiensis is endemic to the Fiji Islands.