Ecteinascidia diaphanis Sluiter, 1885

Monniot, Françoise, 2009, Some ascidians from Indonesian marine lakes (Raja Ampat Islands, West Papua), Zootaxa 2106, pp. 13-40 : 28-30

Ecteinascidia diaphanis Sluiter, 1885

( Figure 12 B)

Ecteinascidia diaphanis Sluiter, 1885: 168 pl. 1fig.2, pl.2 figs 7–10; Kott: 1985: 90 fig. 35; Monniot F. & Monniot C.: 1996: 227 fig.43; Kott: 2003 :1635 fig. 5AB and synonymy.

? Ecteinascidia ndouae Monniot C. 1991: 505 fig.6.

Material. Indonesia. West Papua, Gam Island, southeast side, Blue Water mangrove channel, 00°29.164’S – 130°39.865’E, 0.5m, 07/XII/2007, coll. L.J. Bell and LE. Martin, BMC 0 0 1 ( MNHN P2 ECT 108).

The transparent zooids 15mm tall are densely packed on mangrove roots ( Fig. 12 B). The body is colourless except a pale pink tinge of the siphons. Transverse muscles extend over 2/3 of the body wall on each side. They are the only muscles in addition to the siphonal sphincters. The dorsal lamina in a plain membrane carries a languet at its margin at the level of each transverse vessel. Eighteen to twenty longitudinal vessels, almost all entire, lie above 20 rows of stigmata. The stomach has 3 oblique folds. The sperm duct ends in a papilla below the anus at the level of the 6th stigmata row.

Kott (2003) estimates that E. ndouae is a synonym. This species is smaller, more pigmented, with fewer stigmatal rows but nevertheless mature with incubated larvae. Both species are very similar ( Monniot C. 1991). The material is not abundant enough to validate.

Figures

FIGURE 12. A, Ecteinascidia bandaensis. B, Ecteinascidia diaphanis.