Aphanocomaster Messing, 1995b

Summers, Mindi M., Messing, Charles G. & Rouse, Greg W., 2017, The genera and species of Comatulidae (Comatulida: Crinoidea): taxonomic revisions and a molecular and morphological guide, Zootaxa 4268 (2), pp. 151-190 : 170

Aphanocomaster Messing, 1995b

Table 1

Type species. Comaster pulcher AH Clark, 1912a.

Diagnosis. Mouth central in fully developed individuals; up to 39 arms; centrodorsal rounded pentagonal, thick; IBr2 series united by cryptosynarthry; IIBr either 2 joined by synarthry, or 4 consisting of two synarthrial pairs [rarely 4(3+4)]; IIIBr 2 joined by synarthry or syzygy, or 4 joined by two synarthrial or syzygial pairs or synarthry followed by syzygy; arms arising from IIBr usually with 3+4; arms arising from IIIBr with 1+2, 3+4 (rarely 1+2 or 3+4 alone); distal intersyzygial interval 3–5, mainly 4; distalmost pinnule comb on P6–8; comb teeth confluent with outside of pinnule, blunt triangular; proximal comb tooth sometimes slightly twisted but not transverse; comb not tapering significantly distally (modified from Messing 2001; Messing et al. 2000).

Distribution. Kai Islands (Kepulauan Kai), Indonesia. Depth range: the type specimen was recorded as “ Down to 52 metres” (AH Clark 1918, p. 275). More recent specimens were taken in “certainly 299–390 m, possibly to 502 m ” ( Messing et al. 2000, p. 641).

Remarks. The four-ossicle brachitaxes consisting of two synarthrial or syzygial pairs distinguish Aphanocomaster from all other comatulid genera. Brachitaxes of two successive syzygial pairs are unknown in any other featherstar. We have not examined the specimen of A. pulcher from which the sequences are derived ( Hemery et al. 2013).