Nephtys caeca (Fabricius 1780)

The sexes are separate and individuals breed several times over a number of years in the periods April-May and August. The larvae are planktonic. N. caeca starts reproducing in its second year of life and lives for a period of about 7 years. N. caeca is a predator moving through the top layer of the sediment in search for molluscs, crustaceans and other polychaetes. The species is eaten by juveniles of haddock and thornback (Hartmann-Schröder, 1971; Wolff, 1973; Curtis, 1977; Fauchald & Jumars, 1979; Sips, 1988; Fish & Fish, 1989; Olive & Morgan, 1991).

Arctic to Gulf of St. Lawrence to off Rhode Island

N. caeca occurs in small numbers in a broad region parallel to the coast. lt is even more scarce in the offshore part of the Dutch Continental Shelf, where it is only recorded from the Dogger Bank, the Cleaver Bank and the eastern part of the Oyster Ground. The species also occurs in the low intertidal zone of the Delta area and the Wadden Sea. Because of its size the biomass of N. caeca can be locally important.

intertidal, infralittoral and circalittoral of the Gulf and estuary

The species occurs in a wide variety of sediments ranging from coarse to fine muddy sand.

A member of the family Nephtyidae that can reach a considerable size, viz. maximally 200 mm long with up to 150 segments. The head is relatively small and rectangular, with short antennae on the frontal corners giving it a T-shape. Like all nephtyids it has a large eversible, muscular proboscis with internal jaws. The first segment is reduced and bears two pairs of finger-like cirri. The rest of the body is square in cross section with prominent, powerful bilobed parapodia with curved gilis in between the lobes. The body is whitish to greenish brown, with a lightly iridescent cuticle and red gills (Hartmann-Schröder, 1971; Sips, 1988; Fish & Fish, 1989; Hayward & Ryland, 1990; Rainer, 1991).