Astrocladus exiguus (Lamarck, 1816)

Euryale exiguum Lamarck, 1816: 539 .

Astrocladus exiguus .— H. L. Clark, 1915: 187; Cherbonnier & Guille, 1978: 11, pl. 2 figs. 1–2; Putchakarn & Sonchaeng, 2004: 421.

Material Examined. Anton Bruun Cruise 8, Station 403E, off Mozambique, 19° 09’S, 36° 55’E, 88 m, 9 October 1964, 1 specimen, now lost.

Remarks. This small specimen (<8 mm disc diameter) has large tubercles on the distal ends of the radial shields, a feature typical of this species. The remaining disc cover is fine conical granules tipped with a single glassy spine. There are 3–4 arm spines from the third arm segment.

A. exiguus is widely distributed in the Indian Ocean (Mozambique Channel, Andaman Islands, Bay of Bengal, Western Australia) and in the north-western Pacific around the Philippines and southern Japan (Baker 1980).