Ophiarachnella gorgonia Müller & Troschel, 1842

Okanishi, Masanori & Fujita, Yoshihisa, 2019, A comprehensive taxonomic list of brittle stars (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea) from submarine caves of the Ryukyu Islands, southwestern Japan, with a description of a rare species, Dougaloplus echinatus (Amphiuridae), Zootaxa 4571 (1), pp. 73-98 : 88-89

Ophiarachnella gorgonia Müller & Troschel, 1842

[Japanese name: Toume-kumohitode]

( Fig. 9F )

Ophiarachna gorgonia Müller & Troschel 1842: 105 .— Lyman 1865: 39.

Pectinura gorgonia . Lütken 1869: 33.—von Martens 1870: 245.— Lyman 1879: 49; 1882: 15.— Bell 1884: 134.— Brock 1888: 471 –472.— Döderlein 1888: 830.—de Loriol 1893b: 397.— Koehler 1898. 59, pl. 2 figs. 1, 2; 1900: pl. 15 figs. 1, 2; 1905: 8–9; 1907a: 243;; 1907b: 284, 285.— Pfeffer 1900: 83.— H. L. Clark 1908: 289.—M’Intosh 1911: 157–158.

Ophiarachnella gorgonia . — H. L. Clark 1909: 123 –124; 1911: 25; 1915: 305; 1921: 141–142, pl. 12, fig. 5, pl. 35, figs 4, 5; 1928: 443–444; 1932: 209; 1938: 346–347, pl. 15 fig. 1; 1946: 260–261.— Matsumoto 1917: 323 –324.— Koehler 1922: 339, 340; 1930: 273.— Murakami 1942: 33; 1943a: 187 fig. 9; 1943b: 214; 1944: 272; 1963: 180.— Endean 1956: 127.— Chang et al. 1964: 124.— A. M. Clark 1965: 66; 1980: 535; 1982: 488.— Domantay & Domantay 1966: 60 –61.— Domantay & Conlu 1968: 166 –167.— Irimura 1969: 45; 1979: 5; 1981: 43–44; 1982: 66–67, fig.39, pl.13 fig. 6.— A. M. Clark & Rowe 1971: 88 –89, 125, pl. 20 fig. 2.— Kikuchi 1977: 128, 134.— Gibbs et al. 1976: 129.— Cherbonnier & Guille 1978: 217 –218, pl. 15 figs. 5, 6.— Liao 1978: 93.— Rho 1979: 36 –37.— Sloan et al. 1979: 111.— Saba et al. 1982: 29 –30, pl.18 fig.4.— Guille & Vadon 1985: 64.—Guille et al. 1986: 192–193, pl.— Rho & Shin 1987: 216.— Yi & Irimura 1987: 130.— McKnight 1989a: 13; 1989b: 27.— Chao et al. 1991: 123 –124, fig. 2G, H;— Marsh et al. 1993: 62.— Nomura 1993: 26.— Liao & A. M. Clark 1995: 281 –282, fig. 156.— Rowe & Gates 1995: 396.— Shin & Rho 1996: 448, pl. 92.— Jeng 1998: 143, fig. 22.— Irimura & Tachikawa 2002: 18.— Putchakarn & Sonchaeng 2004: 423.— Rowe & Richmond 2004: 3294.— Olbers 2015: 109, pl. 8E, F.—Okanishi 2016: 669.—Okanishi et al. 2016: 25, fig. 9L.

Ophiarachnella marmorata Lyman 1874: 222 –223, pl. 5 figs. 1–7; 1882: 17.— H. L. Clark 1915: 305.

Pectinura megaloplax Bell 1884: 134 –135.— H. L. Clark 1909: 125; 1915: 306; 1946: 263.

Pectinura intermedia Bell 1888: 386 .

Pectinura stearnsii Ives 1891: 21 –213, pl. 11 figs. 1–5.

Pectinura venusta de Loriol 1893a: 16 –19, pl. 23 fig. 3a–h.

Ophiarachnella rugosa H. L. Clark 1938: 352 –354, figs. 32–34.

Material examined. Okinawa Island (RUMF-ZE-02072[1], RUMF-ZE-02073[1], RUMF-ZE-02074[1]): “entrance” of the “Hedo Dome” cave, under rocks or coral rubble, approximately 18 m depth, 10 August 2016 (RUMF-ZE-02072, RUMF-ZE-02073), 22 May 2017 (RUMF-ZE-02074). Ie Island (RUMF-ZE-02075[1]): “entrance” of the “Unnamed cave”, under coral rubles, approximately 18 m depth, 24 June 2017 . Shimoji Island (RUMF-ZE-02085[1]): “second slope” of the “Akuma no Yakata” cave, under coral rubble, approximately 20 m depth, 31 August 2017 .

Distribution. Widely distributed in Indo-West Pacific. Depth range 0– 278 m.

Remarks. This specimen is identified as Ophiarachnella gorgonia by virtue of having: disc covered by dense granules except elongate radial shields; supplementary oral shields large, often equalling the oral shields in width (e.g. A. M. Clark & Rowe, 1971).

Figures

FIGURE 9. Aboral views of living specimens. A, Ophiolepis superba H. L. Clark, 1915 (RUMF-ZE-02063); B, Ophiozonella cavernalis Okanishi & Fujita, 2018a (RUMF-ZE-02064); C, Ophiostriatus sexradiatus irimura, 1993 (RUMF-ZE-02067); D, Ophiocoma pusilla (Brock, 1888) (RUMF-ZE-02083); E, Cryptopelta cf. callista H. L. Clark, 1938 (RUMF-ZE-02068); F, Ophiarachnella gorgonia Müller & Troschel, 1842 (RUMF-ZE-02073); G, Ophiopsammus anchista (H. L. Clark, 1911) (RUMF-ZE-02079); H, Ophiarachna mauritiensis de Loriol, 1893a (RUMF-ZE-02070).