Solaster Forbes, 1839

Forbes, 1839: 120; Gray 1840: 183; Danielssen & Koren 1882: 50; Sladen 1889: 452; Perrier 1894: 151; Acloque 1900: 256; Fisher 1911: 306; Hayashi 1939: 297; 1940: 174; Djakonov 1950: 65; Bernasconi 1964: 258, 1970: 249; Clark & Downey 1992: 301.

Diagnosis

Arms 7 to 17. Abactinal skeleton composed of close-set cruciform or rounded plates (paxillae also referred to as pseudopaxillae) with non-penicillate spinelets. Papular pores single. Marginal plates paxillate in some species, disproportionately sized small superomarginals similar in stature to abactinal paxillae, inferomarginals, prominent, 3×–4× larger than abactinal paxillae, evenly spaced along arm length. Actinal plates spinose with multifid tips. Subambulacral spines forming distinct transverse fans. Furrow spines palmate, unwebbed.

Comments

A review of Solaster species from Stampanato & Jangoux (1993) with other species from outside the Antarctic region (e.g., Clark & Downey 1992), reveals that morphological boundaries for several species, especially those from deep-water habitats, are unclear with named species from disjunct and distant settings similar enough as to appear identical, earlier exemplified by the synonymy of Solaster dianae Stampanato & Jangoux 1993 with Solaster notophrynus Downey 1971 which occurs in tropical Atlantic deep-sea settings. Specimens of Solaster regularis subarcuatus Sladen, 1889, from the Ross Sea and adjacent regions are nearly identical with the deep-sea North Atlantic Solaster abyssicola Verrill 1885 .