Cladocoryne floccosa Rotch, 1871

Gravili, Cinzia, Vito, Doris De, Camillo, Cristina Gioia Di, Martell, Luis, Piraino, Stefano & Boero, Ferdinando, 2015, The non-Siphonophoran Hydrozoa (Cnidaria) of Salento, Italy with notes on their life-cycles: an illustrated guide, Zootaxa 3908 (1), pp. 1-187 : 63-64

Cladocoryne floccosa Rotch, 1871

Fig. 43

See Schuchert (2006) for a complete synonymy.

Material examined. HCUS-S 0 48 (Hydrozoa Collection, University of Salento—fauna of the Salento Peninsula).

Description (based on our own observations; Brinckmann-Voss 1970; Schuchert 2006, 2012):

Hydroid. hydrorhizae as creeping stolons; colonies stolonal or rarely erect; hydrocaulus sparingly branched, covered by perisarc, smooth or with several groups of annulations; hydranth naked, oval areas of microbasic eurytele cnidocysts on the hydranth; with 4–6 short capitate tentacles in one oral whorl and 1–4 whorls of branched capitate aboral tentacles. Gonophores as fixed sporosacs, cryptomedusoids, spherical to oblong, borne on short pedicels, between or over aboral tentacles, 2–8 on each hydranth, females usually with one egg only. Colours: perisarc yellowish to transparent; hydranth light reddish brown in colour but with conspicuous white pigment on oral region; female gonophores white.

Cnidome. Stenoteles and macrobasic euryteles.

Habitat type. Littoral, from the tidal level ( Boero & Fresi 1986) to 50 m depth ( Brinckmann-Voss 1970; Schuchert 2006).

Substrate. Algae, hydroids, sponges, bryozoans and rocks, Posidonia oceanica , and polychaete tubes.

Seasonality. In the Mediterranean Sea, C. floccosa occurs from January to December ( Boero & Fresi 1986; De Vito 2006; this study), March–May, November–December (Puce et al. 2009).

Reproductive period. Fertile colonies occur from April to July ( Boero & Fresi 1986; Bouillon et al. 2004; De Vito 2006; this study).

Distribution. Temperate and tropical waters around the world ( Motz-Kossowska 1905; Teissier 1965; Brinckmann-Voss 1970; Millard & Bouillon 1974; Hirohito 1988; Piraino & Morri 1990; Medel & López- González 1996; Schuchert 1996, 2006; Morri & Bianchi 1999; Piraino et al. 1999; Watson 1999; Peña Cantero & García Carrascosa 2002; Calder et al. 2003; Bouillon et al. 2004; Gravili et al. 2008a; Puce et al. 2009).

Records in Salento. Common at: Torre dell’Inserraglio ( Presicce 1991); La Strea (Porto Cesareo) ( Faucci & Boero 2000); Otranto ( Miglietta et al. 2000; De Vito 2006; Gravili 2006; Gravili et al. 2008a; this study).

Remarks. Fertile animals often exhibit ‘reproductive exhaustion’, with reduced tentacles, sometimes leading to tentacleless hydranths (for more details see Schuchert 2006).

References: Lo Bianco (1899), Motz-Kossowska (1905), Picard (1958a), Brinckmann-Voss (1970), Rossi (1971), Sarà et al. (1978), Boero (1981a, b), Boero & Fresi (1986), Gili (1986), García-Rubies (1987), Piraino & Morri (1990), Roca et al. (1991), Altuna (1994), Medel & López-González (1996), Migotto (1996), Morri & Bianchi (1999), Piraino et al. (1999), Faucci & Boero (2000), Miglietta et al. (2000); Peña Cantero & García Carrascosa (2002) as C. flocosa ; Bouillon et al. (2004), De Vito (2006), Gravili (2006), Schuchert (2006, 2012), Gravili et al. (2008a), Puce et al. (2009).

Figures

FIGURE 43. Cladocoryne floccosa: hydranth (drawn by C. G. Di Camillo). Scale bar: 0.5 mm.