Myriopathes Opresko, 2001

Terrana, Lucas, Bo, Marzia, Opresko, Dennis M. & Eeckhaut, Igor, 2020, Shallow-water black corals (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Antipatharia) from SW Madagascar, Zootaxa 4826 (1), pp. 1-62 : 42

Genus Myriopathes Opresko, 2001

The genus was erected as a family, the Myriopathidae , by Opresko (2001). The type species Antipathes myriophylla Pallas, 1766 , and a neotype has been described from Ambon, Indonesia by Opresko (2001). Species from this genus are characterized by a flabellate or bushy corallum, the stem and the branches are pinnulate to the second order or more with the primary pinnules arranged biserially and alternately in two lateral or anterolateral rows. The secondary pinnules are uniserial at the base of primary pinnules but become biserial distally. The uniserial secondary pinnules usually project out of plane formed by the biserial primary pinnules (Opresko 2001). Some species also have tertiary pinnules on the secondary pinnules. There are currently 11 nominal species within this genus, for which four type specimens are lost, and only four are described using modern techniques, including the neotype.