Lithosoma pentaphylla brevipes Döderlein 1924

Mah, Christopher L., 2018, New genera, species and occurrence records of Goniasteridae (Asteroidea; Echinodermata) from the Indian Ocean, Zootaxa 4539 (1), pp. 1-116 : 51-53

Lithosoma pentaphylla brevipes Döderlein 1924

Figure 19 A –E

Döderlein 1924: 59

Diagnosis. Body flattened, stout, stellate R/r= 2.53 in shape, arms triangular, sharply tapering ( Fig. 19A). Interradial arcs curved. 20–30 marginal plates per interradius (10–15 per side), eight in contact with abactinal plate disk region. Papulae present radially. Superomarginal plates 10–11 abutted over midline ( Fig. 19B). Most actinal plates, especially those adjacent to the adambulacral series with a single tong-like pedicellaria per plate but otherwise smooth, bare ( Fig. 19D, E). Furrow spines proximally four increasing to eight distally, adambulacral pedicellariae with two or three valves ( Fig. 19E).

Comments. This species was originally described as a subspecies of Lithosoma pentaphylla Alcock (1893) by Döderlein (1924) from Timor, Indonesia. This was erroneously listed as a variety by A.M. Clark (1993: 261) and was entered into synonymy of Lithosoma pentaphylla . The individual represented herein corresponds, in part, to furrow spines and body from (R/r) as listed for Lithosoma ochlerotatus as described by Macan (1938), however the arm and overall skeletal morphology of the two species are very different. Arm shape of this specimen for example is triangular and pointed ( Fig. 19A) whereas that of Lithosoma ochlerotatus is rounded. Marginal plate morphology in L. ochlerotatus displays more rounded edges, whereas this individual is more angular ( Fig. 19A, B). However, comparison of Lithosoma pentaphylla brevipes in Döderlein (1924) shows arms and marginal plate morphology consistent with USNM E51276 . Furrow spines in Lithosoma pentaphylla brevipes illustrated in Döderlein’s plate shows four furrow spines on the first two adambulacral plates, but furrow spines share a similar concave arrangement.

Occurrence. Timor, Indonesia to Mozambique, 62– 520 m.

Material Examined. USNM E51276 SE of Beira , Sofala, Mozambique 20°30’S 35°43’S, 62 m. Coll . IIOE aboard R/ V Anton Bruun. 3 Oct 1964. 1 wet spec. R=3.3 r=1.3 .