Podosphaeraster Clark & Wright, 1962

Gale, Andrew Scott, 2021, Taxonomy and phylogeny of the ‘ football stars’ (Asteroidea, Sphaerasteridae), Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 19 (10), pp. 691-741 : 735

Genus Podosphaeraster Clark & Wright, 1962

Type species. Podosphaeraster polyplax Clark & Wright, 1962 , by original designation.

Diagnosis. Small spherical to sub-spherical (oblate) sphaerasterids that lack small ossicles intercalated between the large undifferentiated primary ossicles. The surface of these ossicles is composed of dense, smooth perforate stereom, raised into irregular ridges or confluent rugosities. The adambulacrals have broad rectangular external faces. The muscles dadam, padam and lim between the adambulacrals and ambulacrals are absent. The small madreporite is enclosed centrally within a large interradial ossicle.

Remarks. This Recent genus is now known from six species of worldwide distribution, which have very similar overall construction. Podosphaeraster polyplax is known from off northern Australia and the South China Sea, P. pulvinatus Rowe & Nichols,1980 from the Loyalty Islands, South Pacific, Guam in the North Pacific and the Philippines. The species P. thalassae Cherbonnier, 1970 was recovered from the north-east Atlantic, and Fujita & Rowe (2002) described P. toyoshiomaruae from southern Japan. Finally, McKnight (2006) described P. somnambulator from New Zealand. The present description is based on numerous specimens of P. pulvinatus from the Philippines, obtained by purchase (MhnhL OPH 174–176). The genus Podosphaeraster is re-placed within the Sphaerasteridae (see above).