New records of Scolelepis (Polychaeta : Spionidae) from the sandy beaches of Madagascar, with the description of a new species

Three species of the genus Scolelepis (Polychaeta, Spionidae) are reported from intertidal beaches in Madagascar. A new species, Scolelepis (Scolelepi s) vazaha n.sp., is described from Cap Eat (type locality) and Fort Dauphin . This species is unique among spionids in possessing at least one large, c urved hook in each notopodium of setiger 4. Males may additionally have sim ilar hooks on setiger 5 or on setigers 5 and 6. On median setigers males al so possess peculiar notopodial swellings, some of which contain a geniculat e, penicillate seta of a type previously unknown for the family. S. (S.) wi lliami (de Silva, 1961), formerly known only from the original description of two specimens from Sri Lanka, was found on five beaches along the southe ast coast of Madagascar. This poorly known species is redescribed and compa red to the closely related S. (S.) laciniata Eibye-Jacobsen, 1997, describe d from the west coast of Thailand. S. (S.) lefebvrei (Gravier, 1905), previ ously reported from the west coast of Madagascar, was also found on six san dy beaches along the northeast and southeast coasts. Earlier descriptions a re supplemented by information on variation in numerical characters. Scanni ng electron photographs and details on palp morphology are provided for all three species.