Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the Pacific

The zoanthid genus Neozoanthus was originally described in 1972 from a single species in Madagascar. This monotypic genus was placed within its own family, Neozoanthidae, given its unusual characters of only partial sand encrustation, and an endodermal sphincter muscle combined with a brachycnemic m...

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Main Authors: James Reimer, Yuka Irei, Takuma Fujii
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Pensoft Publishers 2012-11-01
Series:ZooKeys
Online Access:http://zookeys.pensoft.net/lib/ajax_srv/article_elements_srv.php?action=download_pdf&item_id=3398
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author James Reimer
Yuka Irei
Takuma Fujii
author_facet James Reimer
Yuka Irei
Takuma Fujii
author_sort James Reimer
collection DOAJ
description The zoanthid genus Neozoanthus was originally described in 1972 from a single species in Madagascar. This monotypic genus was placed within its own family, Neozoanthidae, given its unusual characters of only partial sand encrustation, and an endodermal sphincter muscle combined with a brachycnemic mesenterial arrangement. Recently, undescribed specimens of Neozoanthus were discovered thousands of kilometers away in both Australia and Japan. While the phylogenetic and evolutionary aspects of Neozoanthus spp. are now somewhat well understood, the new specimens remained undescribed. Here we describe the specimens as two new species, N. uchina sp. n. from the Middle Ryukyu Islands of southern Japan, and N. caleyi sp. n. from the waters around Heron Island, on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Both species can be distinguished from each other and the type species, N. tulearensis, by their distributions, oral disk colors, and average numbers of tentacles. Additionally, each species appears to have subtle differences in their cnidae. The division of Japanese and Australian specimens into two species is strongly supported by recently reported phylogenetic data. The discovery and description of these two species highlights how little is known of zoanthid species diversity in the Indo-Pacific.
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spelling doaj.art-137b86cb8ea54b0d8ae25f38fbaf4de42022-12-22T02:40:45ZengPensoft PublishersZooKeys1313-29891313-29702012-11-012460698710.3897/zookeys.246.38863398Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the PacificJames ReimerYuka IreiTakuma FujiiThe zoanthid genus Neozoanthus was originally described in 1972 from a single species in Madagascar. This monotypic genus was placed within its own family, Neozoanthidae, given its unusual characters of only partial sand encrustation, and an endodermal sphincter muscle combined with a brachycnemic mesenterial arrangement. Recently, undescribed specimens of Neozoanthus were discovered thousands of kilometers away in both Australia and Japan. While the phylogenetic and evolutionary aspects of Neozoanthus spp. are now somewhat well understood, the new specimens remained undescribed. Here we describe the specimens as two new species, N. uchina sp. n. from the Middle Ryukyu Islands of southern Japan, and N. caleyi sp. n. from the waters around Heron Island, on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Both species can be distinguished from each other and the type species, N. tulearensis, by their distributions, oral disk colors, and average numbers of tentacles. Additionally, each species appears to have subtle differences in their cnidae. The division of Japanese and Australian specimens into two species is strongly supported by recently reported phylogenetic data. The discovery and description of these two species highlights how little is known of zoanthid species diversity in the Indo-Pacific.http://zookeys.pensoft.net/lib/ajax_srv/article_elements_srv.php?action=download_pdf&item_id=3398
spellingShingle James Reimer
Yuka Irei
Takuma Fujii
Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the Pacific
ZooKeys
title Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the Pacific
title_full Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the Pacific
title_fullStr Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the Pacific
title_full_unstemmed Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the Pacific
title_short Two new species of Neozoanthus (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the Pacific
title_sort two new species of neozoanthus cnidaria hexacorallia zoantharia from the pacific
url http://zookeys.pensoft.net/lib/ajax_srv/article_elements_srv.php?action=download_pdf&item_id=3398
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