New species of Laetmonice (Aphroditidae, Annelida) from bathyal and abyssal depths around Australia (2015-2022)

Research voyages on board RV ‘Investigator’ between 2015 and 2022 sampled benthic communities of Australia’s Eastern and Southern continental margins from the slope down to abyssal depths (463–5000 m) as well as the seamounts off the Australian Indian Ocean Territories (IOT) that include Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Over 500 specimens of the annelid family Aphroditidae were collected during the voyages. Some of the most common aphroditids collected during these voyages belonged to the large-bodied members of the genus Laetmonice Phylogenetic studies revealed the presence of at least nine distinct mitochondrial genetic lineages within Laetmonice, four of which have been described here as Laetmonice hutchingsae sp. nov., L. murrayae sp. nov., L. mensahaedorum sp. nov. and L. paxtonae sp. nov. If this data has been used in any products, please acknowledge with the following: We acknowledge the use of the CSIRO Marine National Facility (https://ror.org/01mae9353) in undertaking this research.