A new Muricea species (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Octocorallia) from the eastern tropical Pacific

 

Guardado en:
Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Breedy Shadid, Odalisca, Guzmán, Héctor M.
Formato: artículo original
Fecha de Publicación:2016
Descripción:The genus Muricea is considered abundant and widely distributed along the eastern Pacific. Its occurrence in shallow waters has been recognised; however species from deeper than 30 m have been rarely recorded. During the 2005 R/V Urracá expedition along the north and central Pacific coast of Costa Rica several octocoral specimens were collected by bottom trawling from 30 to 150 m yielding new species and new records. Herein we describe a new species of Muricea from deeper than 30 m. The morphological characters of the species were analysed and illustrated by optic and scanning electron microscopy. Muricea subtilis sp. n. can be distinguished from the other species in the genus by its thin spiny branches, non-imbricate calyces, white colony and sclerites, and the size and composition of sclerites. Comparative character tables are provided for the closest Muricea species-group. This new species increases the number in the genus to 26, and contributes to the knowledge on the diversity and distribution of mesophotic soft corals in the eastern Pacific.
País:Kérwá
Institución:Universidad de Costa Rica
Repositorio:Kérwá
OAI Identifier:oai:https://www.kerwa.ucr.ac.cr:10669/73448
Acceso en línea:https://zookeys.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=10828
https://hdl.handle.net/10669/73448
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Alcyonacea
Cnidaria
eastern Pacific
Mesophotic zone
Muricea subtilis
New species
Plexaurid
Soft corals
Taxonomy