Leptogorgia hebes Verrill, 1869

Devictor, Susan T. & Morton, Steve L., 2010, Identification guide to the shallow water (0 - 200 m) octocorals of the South Atlantic Bight 2599, Zootaxa 2599 (1), pp. 1-62 : 46-47

Leptogorgia hebes Verrill, 1869

( Figure 42 )

Leptogorgia hebes Verrill, 1869:422 . — Deichmann 1936:179; Plate 17 fig. 3; Plate 19 figs. 16–23.— Cairns et al. 2002:35.

Leptogorgia rubropurpurea Verrill, 1912:398 ; Plate 29 figs. 5–5a; Plate 30 fig. 1; Plate 33 fig. 8; Plate 35 figs. 10–10a.

Leptogorgia carolinensis Verrill, 1872:432 .

Lophogorgia hebes .— Bayer 1961:207; Figs. 62 f–I, 63; Plate VII fig. 4.

Material examined. SERTC S428 , 12.4 m, Charleston Harbor , South Carolina, April 21, 2004 . SERTC S429 , 13.7 m, off Edisto Island , South Carolina, June 4, 2004 . SERTC S430 , 28.4 m, off Hilton Head , South Carolina, June 4, 2004 . SERTC S721 , 18.3 m, off North Inlet , Georgetown, South Carolina, June 1, 2004 . SERTC S1325 , 33.5 m, off Bull Island , South Carolina, June 2, 2004 . SERTC S2517 , 24.4 m, off St. Helena Sound , South Carolina, April 29, 2005 .

Remarks. Leptogorgia hebes is a very common species in the shallow SAB and can be found on hardbottom environments along with Titanideum frauenfeldii and Leptogorgia virgulata . The colonies reach moderate size and are irregularly pinnately branched in one plane or slightly bushy. The polyp mounds are hemispherical near the main branch and less distinct near the ends of the twigs, and the apertures are slit-like. There is often a distinct groove that runs down two sides of the slightly flattened branches. Terminal twigs are 1–2 mm in diameter while branches near the colony base may be up to 6 mm.

The coenenchymal sclerites are blunt capstans and 8-radiates up to 0.1 mm, and the polyps have flattened serrated rods of approximately the same size. L. hebes is usually bright red, orange or dark yellow, but purple colonies have been recorded ( Bayer 1961). This species has been observed with numerous small gorgonocephalid ophiuroids attached to its branches (DeVictor, pers. obs.).

There are numerous lots of this species in the NMNH from the shallow SAB.

Atlantic distribution: Virginia to north Florida, 8–116 m; Gulf of Mexico, 0–37 m; Aruba, unknown depth; Brazil (unknown depth) ( Deichmann, 1936; Bayer, 1961; NMNH collections; SERTC collection).

Figures

FIGURE 42. Leptogorgia hebes: A, sclerites (S1863); a–c) capstans from coenenchyme; d, e) flat anthocodial rods (scale bar = 0.02 mm); B, stem and expanded polyps; C, colony morphology (S430, preserved specimen; height approximately 15 cm).