Porcupinella profunda Lopez-Gonzalez & Williams, 2011

Williams, Gary C., 2021, The deep-sea pennatulacean genus Porcupinella - with the description of a new species from Tasmania (Anthozoa, Octocorallia, Chunellidae), ZooKeys 1019, pp. 1-14 : 1

Porcupinella profunda Lopez-Gonzalez & Williams, 2011 Figures 4 , 5 , 6

Porcupinella profunda López-González & Williams, 2011: 311; Cordeiro et al. 2020b.

Material examined.

(Non-type/Voucher). CASIZ 180424, Northeast Atlantic Ocean, Porcupine Abyssal Plain (48°49.64'N, 16°30.12'W); 4841 m; 17 March 1998; coll. BENGAL cruises (EU Marine Science and Technology Programme, 1994-1998, Bottom Trawl); two whole colonies wet-preserved in 75% ethanol, original fixative 3% buffered formalin. CASIZ 180425, Northeast Atlantic Ocean, Porcupine Abyssal Plain (48°48.30'N, 16°25.97'W); 4839 m; 19 March 1998; coll. BENGAL cruises (EU Marine Science and Technology Programme, 1994-1998, Bottom Trawl); two whole colonies wet-preserved in 75% ethanol, original fixative 3% buffered formalin. CASIZ 180426, Northeast Atlantic Ocean, Porcupine Abyssal Plain (48°47.82'N, 16°40.37'W); 4847 m; 10 January 1998; coll. BENGAL cruises (EU Marine Science and Technology Programme, 1994-1998; Bottom Trawl); two whole colonies wet-preserved in 75% ethanol, original fixative 3% buffered formalin.

Habitat and distribution.

Recorded from the eastern Atlantic Ocean from the Porcupine Abyssal Plain (southwest of Ireland), south to equatorial latitudes, 4510-5300 m in depth. ( López-González and Williams 2011: 314) (Fig. 6A ).

Description.

The six whole colonies from the Porcupine Abyssal Plain that were examined for this study range in length from 29-41 mm (Figs 4 , 5 ). The colonies are slightly crescent-shaped to more-or-less straight. The polyp-bearing portion of the upper stalk is somewhat widened, forming a keel, where the relatively large lateral polyps are arranged (Fig. 4 ). The axis is present throughout the length of the colonies, and is discernably wider in the rachis and is very close to the surface, which provides more rigidity to the polyp-bearing portion of the rachis. The total number of autozooids in any given colony is generally five - one terminal polyp and four lateral polyps. The siphonozooids are not particularly numerous and are presented as low rounded mounds on the surface of the rachis between the lateral and terminal autozoods and just proximal to the lateral autozooids. The distal portion of the stalk that contain the polyps is narrowly spearhead-shaped, and ends with a pointed tip or beak (Figs 4 , 5A, B ). A single terminal polyp emanates from the base of the distal terminus. Two pairs of lateral polyps are oppositely disposed on the spearhead-shaped upper portion of the stalk. (Fig. 5 ). The proximal end of the short peduncle is somewhat [slightly] swollen and forms a relatively narrow, elongated bulb (Figs 4 , 5A, F ). Conspicuous sclerites are absent in all parts of the colony, with the exception of extremely small ovals in peduncle interior. The color of wet-preserved colonies is uniformly white throughout (Fig. 5 ).

Remarks.

At least twenty-five collected colonies are known, thirteen of which are deposited at the Muséum national d’Histoire Naturelle (MNHN), six at the Biodiversidad y Ecología de Invertebrados Marinos of the University of Seville (BEIM), and six at the California Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Figures

Figure 4. Porcupinella profunda. Diagram of external Colonial morphology (CASIZ 180424). Abbreviations: a - axis; dt - distal terminus of the colony; k - keel of the stalk; la - lateral autozooid; p - peduncle, r - rachis; s - siphonozooid ta - terminal autozooid; tb - terminal bulb of the peduncle. Scale bar: 10 mm.

Figure 5. Porcupinella profunda. Non-type material A-B CASIZ 180424 C-D CASIZ 180425 E-F CASIZ 180426; Scale bar: 20 mm.

Figure 6. Porcupinella spp. A world map of distribution. Porcupinella profunda (red circle), Porcupinella tasmanica sp. nov. (red triangle) B detailed map of the type locality of Porcupinella tasmanica sp. nov. (yellow circle = type locality). Map data 2020 Google.