Nicella pustulosa Thomson & Simpson, 1909

Ramvilas, Ghosh, Alderslade, Philip & Ranjeet, Kutty, 2023, The taxonomy of Indian gorgonians: an assessment of the descriptive records of gorgonians (Anthozoa: Octocorallia: Alcyonacea) recorded as occurring in the territorial waters of India, along with neighbouring regions and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and the highlighting of perceived unethical practice, Zootaxa 5236 (1), pp. 1-124 : 97

Nicella pustulosa Thomson & Simpson, 1909

Nicella pustulosa Thomson & Simpson, 1909: 267–268 , pl. 5, fig. 6; pl. 8, fig. 11 (Laccadives; Andamans).

Opinion: This species does occur in the region but its true identity is unknown.

Justification:

Literature analysis: Kükenthal (1924) synonymised this species, using a question mark, with Phenilia sanguinolenta Gray, 1859 , but the redescription of that species given by Bayer & Grasshoff (1994: 39) clearly shows that it is very different from Nicella pustulosa . It is more likely that the species belongs in the genus Verrucella , but some of the sclerites illustrated by Thomson & Simpson are quite unusual, so the actual genus represented by Thomson and Simpsons’ material remains unknown. Rao & Devi (2003) just list the species.