Molpadiodemas translucens, O'Loughlin & Ahearn, 2005

O'Loughlin, P. Mark & Ahearn, Cynthia, 2005, A review of pygal-furrowed Synallactidae (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea), with new species from the Antarctic, Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Memoirs of Museum Victoria 62 (2), pp. 147-179 : 163-164

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.24199/j.mmv.2005.62.5

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/116087F5-FFB8-FFF1-FC91-7F30FF291A6C

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Molpadiodemas translucens
status

sp. nov.

Molpadiodemas translucens View in CoL sp. nov.

Figures 2c View Figure 2 , 5n, o View Figure 5 , 8m –p View Figure 8 , 12e, f View Figure 12

Material examined. Holotype. Weddell Sea, Antarctic Peninsula, 64°07'S, 40°48'W, 4465–4557 m, RV Eltanin, USARP Cr 12 stn 1018, 21 Mar 1964, USNM E48652 About USNM . GoogleMaps

Paratypes. Type locality and date, USNM 1008072 About USNM (5) ; NMV F101863 About NMV (2).

Other material. South-east Pacific Basin, 4575–4813 m, E49487 (2).

Description. Up to 79 mm long; body wall thin, soft, translucent; no body attachments; body typically rounded in transverse section, not elongate, tapered anteriorly and posteriorly, lateroventral margin sometimes subacute or slightly bulbous; complete body cover of small, cylindrical, soft, scattered tube feet, erect or lying on body, typically 0.3 mm long, 0.1 mm diameter, rarely contiguous over most of body, slightly more concentrated ventrolaterally, most concentrated and frequently contiguous pygally, typically 0.6 mm long, 0.2 mm diameter; longitudinal muscles flat, slightly narrow; ossicles in tentacles and gonads; tentacle ossicles abundant, variable in form, thin to thick tapered smooth distally bluntly pointed rods sometimes with central rounded thickening, rods with intertwined branched ends creating small perforations, rods with fused side branches creating small lateral perforations, fused branches sometimes creating large perforated irregular mesh, ossicles up to at least 520 Μm long; gonad ossicles abundant, predominantly thin lace mesh with irregular large perforations, not developed on primary thick rod, some irregular finely spinous thin rods with irregular branching closing to create perforations, ossicles up to 320 Μm long.

Colour. Pale greyish brown, with traces of mauve colouration; tube feet off-white to semi-translucent.

Etymology. From the Latin lux (light) and trans (through), referring to the translucent body wall.

Distribution. South-east Pacific Basin, Weddell Sea, Antarctic Peninsula, 4465–4813 m.

Remarks. Amongst Molpadiodemas species, the distinguishing characters are: translucent body wall; lace mesh gonad ossicles.

USNM

Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History

NMV

Museum Victoria

Darwin Core Archive (for parent article) View in SIBiLS Plain XML RDF