Molpadiodemas ustulatus, 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 : 164

publication ID

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

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/116087F5-FFB9-FFF1-FF35-7D09FBF41DFE

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Molpadiodemas ustulatus
status

sp. nov.

Molpadiodemas ustulatus View in CoL sp. nov.

Figures 6m –p View Figure 6 , 7a–c View Figure 7 , 12q–t View Figure 12

Material examined. Holotype. South-east Pacific Ocean , Peru, Peru-Chile Trench, 8°48'S, 80°40'W, 5069–5173 m, RV Anton Bruun, Cr 11 stn 178, 3 Nov 1965, USNM 1022493 About USNM . GoogleMaps

Paratypes. Type locality and date, USNM 1022566 About USNM (3) ; NMV F101858 About NMV (1).

Description. Up to 73 mm long; form cylindrical, narrowly elongate, slightly dorsoventrally depressed (possible artefact), lacking brim; outer body wall soft, pustulose, wrinkled; inner body wall soft, thin, semi-gelatinous; close cover of small cylindrical tube feet all over body, extended but not erect, longest and most evident in lateral band, not matted, up to 1.0 mm long, typically 0.6 mm long, 0.2 mm diameter; ossicles in tentacles and gonad; tentacle ossicles abundant smooth rods, thick to thin, straight to curved, some with central swellings, some with short branches, some with intertwined joined ends creating large and small perforations, some irregularly tuberous, up to at least 270 Μm long; gonad ossicles numerous thick to thin smooth rods, some lateral branches fused to form mesh with large perforations, fragments up to 280 Μm long.

Colour. Body and tube feet very dark brown.

Etymology. From the Latin ustulatus (scorched), referring to the dark brown blistered appearance of the specimens.

Distribution. South-east Pacific Ocean, Peru-Chile Trench, 5069–5173 m.

Remarks. The specimens are in poor condition, but adequate for establishing morphological diagnostic characters. Amongst Molpadiodemas species the distinguishing characters of M. ustulatus are: very dark brown colour; narrowly elongate body; tube feet most evident in lateral band; gonad rod ossicles with open lateral mesh.

NMV

Museum Victoria

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