Staurotheca affinis (Jäderholm, 1904)

Cantero, A. L. Peña & Vervoort, W., 2003, Species of Staurotheca Allman, 1888 (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa: Sertulariidae) from US Antarctic expeditions, with the description of three new species, Journal of Natural History 37 (22), pp. 2653-2722 : 2668

Staurotheca affinis (Jäderholm, 1904)

Selaginopsis affinis Jäderholm, 1904a : xi; Peña Cantero, 1991: 74–78, pls 7, 41, pl. 64 figure

b; Peña Cantero and García Carrascosa, 1994: 121, figure 3a–d; 1995: 25–28, figures 5A–I,

6A–E, 61A; Peña (Cantero) et al., 1996: 8. Thuiaria affinis: Blanco, 1994a: 160 ; 1994b: 195.? Thuiaria affinis: Naumov and Stepan’yants, 1962: 92. Staurotheca affinis: Stechow, 1923b: 152 ; Peña Cantero et al., 1997: 336; Peña Cantero and

García Carrascosa, 1999: 212 et seq.; Peña Cantero et al., 1999: 160.

Remarks. Staurotheca affinis is characterized by having erect stems, abundantly branched in one plane, by the shape of the hydrotheca, almost completely immersed into the branches, by the absence of anastomoses, by the presence of mushroomshaped diaphragm and by the presence of four to six hydrothecae per verticil (cf. table 6).

Ecology and distribution. Staurotheca affinis is a shelf species, having been found from 75 (Jäderholm, 1904a) to 202 m depth (Peña Cantero and García Carrascosa, 1995). Fertile colonies were collected in December (Peña Cantero and García Carrascosa, 1995).

Staurotheca affinis has been found so far only in the South Georgia area, where it seems to be endemic (Peña Cantero and García Carrascosa, 1995).