Cnemidocarpa schumacheri, Monniot, 2002

Monniot, Claude, 2002, Stolidobranch ascidians from the tropical western Indian Ocean, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 135 (1), pp. 65-120 : 97-98

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.1046/j.1096-3642.2002.00017.x
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/436F3F3C-FFF0-FF8F-FCD3-FED9FD251D6A
treatment provided by	Carolina
scientific name	Cnemidocarpa schumacheri
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

CNEMIDOCARPA SCHUMACHERI View in CoL SP. NOV. ( FIG. 25 View Figure 25 )

Cnemidocarpa hemprichi: Monniot C., 1973: 51 View in CoL , fig. 1 – Eilat.

Material

Type: MNHN S1 CNE 11 About MNHN , Eilat coll. H. Schumacher.

Other material examined: Djibouti, 1 specimen, coll. C. Monniot, 1996 .

Recent collecting in the Indian Ocean has proved the existence of several Styelidae species that are very similar in their aspect and internal anatomy. Some of these were gathered together by Michaelsen (1919) under the name Cnemidocarpa hemprichi Hartmeyer, 1916 . Michaelsen put together specimens of very different sizes and a variable number of polycarps, and he did not mention the placement of the genital papillae. This combination of circumstances has prompted us to look especially closely at the new material and in consequence to isolate several species.

Description

The description of C. hemprichi Hartmeyer, 1916 corresponds to large size ascidians recently collected off Yemen. The much smaller specimen from Djibouti and those described by Monniot (1973) have more numerous, elongated gonads ( Fig. 25A,B View Figure 25 ).

A re-examination of the material from Eilat, described in 1973, confirms the previous observations: many very elongated parallel polycarps arranged in a row on each side of the body and each opening by an apical papilla dorsally ( Fig. 25A View Figure 25 ). The specimen from Djibouti has the same external shape as those from the Red Sea. Its body is 2 cm long and was attached by its whole ventral side. The tunic is hard, wrinkled, and thick. The short siphons stand well apart. The body wall is thick and opaque. There is a large oral velum. The oral tentacles, very unequal in length, are distributed in four orders. The C-shaped dorsal tubercle occupies the whole peri-tubercular area. The dorsal lamina is long and low. The wide endostyle is fused to the body wall. Numerous dermato-branchial bridges unite the branchial sac to the polycarps. On each side, there are four low branchial folds, each with a wide base, not well delimited from the remainder of the branchial tissue. Each fold carries a dozen longitudinal vessels. There are two to three vessels between the folds.

The gut forms a closed primary loop, and then a wide secondary loop ( Fig. 25B View Figure 25 ). The long rectum ends in a gaping anus with a wavy rim. The elongated stomach has longitudinal internal folds, only visible when its wall is cut.

The many polycarps are very long, parallel to each other, and in a row on each side, each with an apical papilla at its dorsal extremity ( Fig. 25B View Figure 25 ). This gonadal structure places the species in the genus Cnemidocarpa . Very numerous endocarps protrude over the whole internal side of the body wall, among the gonads and inside the gut loop ( Fig. 25B View Figure 25 ).

At the base of the cloacal siphon, protruding papillae of the body wall are arranged in several circles. Each papilla is topped by a thin filament ( Fig. 25A,B View Figure 25 ).

The only difference between this specimen from Djibouti and those from Eilat is the smaller number of gonads in them.

Etymology

This new species is dedicated to Dr H. Schumacher.