Alcyonium paessleri May, 1899

Pérez, Carlos Daniel & Zamponi, Mauricio Oscar, 2004, New records of octocorals (Cnidaria, Anthozoa) from the south western Atlantic Ocean, with zoogeographic considerations, Zootaxa 630, pp. 1-12 : 3-4

Alcyonium paessleri May, 1899

( Fig. 2A )

Alcyonium paessleri May, 1899: 6 ; Molander 1929: 50 –51; Verseveldt 1967: 7 –10; Williams 1986: 61.

Diagnosis. See Verseveldt 1967: 7–10.

Material examined. ARGENTINA, South Georgia Islands, 53º35´S, 38º07´W, March 1995, 100– 200 m, Vessel “Dr. Holmberg”, collector Nahabedian, (CA DCM 1).

Description. Big colony, 29 cm in height. Stalk short and thick, 12 cm in diameter. Colony multilobate with secondary lobes. Polyps often form small hemispherical or rounded protuberances on the surface of the polyparium when retracted. Anthocodiae with crown and points of slender spinous spindles, some projections and tubercles are also present (0.12–0.29 mm). Coenenchyme with rods and spindles with spinous process (0.12– 0.24 mm)

Distribution ( Fig. 1 ). Estuary of Rio de la Plata (38º06’S, 55º13’W; 440–480 m) ( Castro 1990); Corrientes Cape (38º58’S, 55º17’W; 595–642 m), Ninfas Point (44º19’S, 59º52’W; 183–366 m), Tres Puntas Cape (47º09’S, 60º38’W; 424–428 m), Straits of Magellan (150 m) ( Verseveldt 1967); Smyth Canal ( Chile) ( May 1899); Seymour Island (150 m) ( Antarctic Peninsula) ( Molander 1929); Franklin Island (76º10´S, 168º30´E, 79 m) (Ross Sea) ( Hickson 1902); off Mt. Erebus (Ross Sea) (328 m), Ross Sea (42m – 407m) ( Hickson 1907).

New record: South Georgia Islands.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Geographical distribution of the studied species of octocorals in the Subantarctic Region. Alcyonium paessleri; Alcyonium haddoni; ˖ Primnoella biserialis; Primnoella compressa; ★ Dasystenella acanthina; Thouarella koellikeri.

FIGURE 2. A. Alcyonium paessleri May, 1899, alcohol sample, MACN 18635. B. Alcyonium haddoni Wright & Studer, 1889, alcohol sample, MACN 15666.