Ophiocoma aethiops Luetken , 1859

Granja-Fernandez, Rebeca, Herrero-Perezrul, Maria D., Lopez-Perez, Ramon A., Hernandez, Luis, Rodriguez-Zaragoza, Fabian A., Jones, Robert Wallace & Pineda-Lopez, Ruben, 2014, Ophiuroidea (Echinodermata) from coral reefs in the Mexican Pacific, ZooKeys 406, pp. 101-145 : 124-126

Ophiocoma aethiops Luetken, 1859 Figure 5 A–F

Description.

Disk rounded (dd = 1.1 to 29.4 mm) and totally covered by fine granulation. The granulation covers the base of arms and the radial shields (Fig. 5D). The ventral side of the disc covered with scattered grains (Fig. 5E). Oral shields large, oblong; longer than wide. Adoral shields small, triangular and not meeting within. Cluster of rounded dental papillae on apex of jaw. Four oral papillae on each side of the jaw, the outer papillae being the largest. Four to five teeth (Fig. 5F). Dorsal arm plates wider than long, hexagonal shape (Fig. 5B). Ventral arm plates quadrangular with circular edges. Reduced lateral arm plates. Arm spines rounded, stout and slightly flattened. Arm spines, three and four, alternating. Two tentacle scales (Fig. 5C). Dorsal side dark brown-black in color. Disk with a brown large spot (Fig. 5A). Ventral arm plates and jaw with lighter dark color (Fig. 5K).

Distribution.

Lower California, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Peru, Galapagos Islands ( Clark HL 1915, Hooker et al. 2005, Neira and Cantera 2005, Alvarado et al. 2010). In Mexico, from the Gulf of California (Baja California Sur, Sonora, Sinaloa), on the Pacific side of Baja California and Baja California Sur, Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima, Revillagigedo Islands, Michoacán, Guerrero and Oaxaca ( Solís-Marín et al. 2005, Honey-Escandón et al. 2008, Granja-Fernández and López-Pérez 2011). From intertidal to 55 m depth ( Maluf 1988). In this study, Ophiocoma aethiops was collected on coral reefs from Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima, Michoacán, Guerrero and Oaxaca, between depths of 2.1 to 26 m.

Remarks.

Ophiocoma aethiops is the largest brittle star on coral reefs from the Mexican Pacific. It is associated with live and dead stony coral, rocks, algae and rhodoliths. Juvenile organisms inhabit all the above mentioned substrata, meanwhile adults inhabit the interstitial spaces of live and dead stony corals and rocks. We observed that it is common to find juveniles attached to the dorsal side of the arms and disk of adults; an observation that has been previously recorded by Hendler et al. (1999) for Panama. Ophiocoma aethiops is a gonochoric species without sexual dimorphism ( Benítez-Villalobos et al. 2012). On the Estacahuite reef of Oaxaca, females of Ophiocoma aethiops spawn from May to November, while male spawning occurs throughout the year, whereas the spawning of Ophiocoma aethiops in Panama occurs during November and December ( Hendler 1979, Benítez-Villalobos et al. 2012). Besides the color pattern mentioned in the description of the species, we noted that some specimens can have a large white patch on the dorsal side of the disk, whereas the whole body of other specimens are black-brownish.

Collected material.

NAYARIT:Islas Marietas (1 specimen, stony coral, 2.1 m, 01/03/2010, ICML-UNAM 10254).

JALISCO:Cuastecomatito (5 specimens, rock, 30/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10336); Isla Cocinas (9 specimens, 29/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10304); La Pajarera (2 specimens, rock, 29/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10311; 2 specimens, rhodolith, 29 /09/2010, ICML-UNAM); La Virgencita (1 specimen, stony coral, 30/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10332); Pelícanos (2 specimens, 29/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10315).

COLIMA:Punto B (3 specimens, 01/10/2010, ICML-UNAM 10344); L’Recif (1 specimen, 01/10/2010, ICML-UNAM 10346), Carrizales (1 specimen, stony coral, 01/10/2010, ICML-UNAM 10352).

MICHOACÁN:Faro de Bucerías (2 specimens, 28/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10298); Isla Pájaros (9 specimens, stony coral, 28/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10293; 1 specimen, dead coral, 28/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10284; 3 specimens, rock, 28/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10285); Morro de Enmedio (2 specimens, stony coral, 3.7 m, 24/02/2010, ICML-UNAM 10250).

GUERRERO:Morro del Cerro Colorado (1 specimen, rock, 4.5 m, 23/11/2011, ICML-UNAM 10484; 6 specimens, rock, 5.5 m, 31/05/2012, ICML-UNAM 10567); Coral (5 specimens, rock, 5 m, 23/11/2011, ICML-UNAM 10493; 3 specimens, rhodolith, 23/11/2011, ICML-UNAM 10488); Carey (1 specimen, rock, 4 m, 23/11/2011, ICML-UNAM 10499); Zacatoso (2 specimens, rock, 02/03/2009, ICML-UNAM 10178; 2 specimens, algae, 7.5 m, 01/12/2010, ICML-UNAM 10379; 1 specimen, algae, 16.5 m, 02/12/2010, ICML-UNAM 10384; 8 specimens, stony coral, 5.1 m, 01/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10258; 1 specimen, rock, 9.1 m, 01/06/2012, ICML-UNAM 10578); Caleta de Chón (2 specimens, rock, 03/03/2009, ICML-UNAM 10183; 2 specimens, stony coral, 6.1 m, 02/12/2010, MHN 005-4420; 2 specimens, stony coral, 7.6 m, 26/03/2010, MHN 005-4466; 1 specimen, rock, 5 m, 22/11/2011, ICML-UNAM 10475); El Yunque (3 specimens, rock, 5.5 m, 04/12/2010, ICML-UNAM 10407); Manzanillo (1 specimen, rock, 05/11/2009, ICML-UNAM 10242; 2 specimens, rock, 05/03/2009, ICML-UNAM 10193; 2 specimens, rhodolith, 5.3 m, 04/12/2010, ICML-UNAM 10414; 4 specimens, rock, 6.1 m, 30/05/2012, ICML-UNAM 10552); Morros de Potosí (1 specimen, algae, 12.2 m, 03/12/2010, ICML-UNAM 10393); Palmitas (2 specimens, stony coral, 3.6 m, 03/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10266; 21 specimens, rock, 6.4 m, 20/11/2011, ICML-UNAM 10456); El Ripial (1 specimen, 20/11/2011, ICML-UNAM 10463).

OAXACA:Playa Coral (1 specimen, stony coral, 2.3 m, 10/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10281); Puerto Angelito (2 specimens, rock, 10 m, 23/04/2012, ICML-UNAM 10509); El Zapatito (2 specimens, rock, 23/04/2009, ICML-UNAM 10224); Punto de Presión (3 specimens, rock, 26 m, 23/04/2009, ICML-UNAM 10235); El Faro (2 specimens, rock, 22.3 m, 22/04/2009, ICML-UNAM 10216; 6 specimens, rock, 23/04/2009, ICML-UNAM 10230; 1 specimen, rock, 13.5 m, 24/04/2012, ICML-UNAM 10517); Mazunte (8 specimens, rock, 17/04/2008, MHN 005-4303; 2 specimens, rock, 20/02/2009, ICML-UNAM 10172); Estacahuite (7 specimens, rock, 17/04/2008, MHN 005-4313; 3 specimens, stony coral, 7.6 m, 26/03/2010, MHN 005-4406; 1 specimen, stony coral, 10.3 m, 04/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10269); La Mina (8 specimens, rock, 17/04/2008, MHN 005-4293); Boquilla (1 specimen, stony coral, 6.3 m, 08/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10279); Tijera (1 specimen, rock, 16/04/2008, MHN 005-4290); San Agustín (1 specimen, rock, 11/09/2007, MHN 005-4288; 5 specimens, rock, 15/09/2007, MHN 005-4360); Riscalillo (8 speci mens, rock, 04/12/2008, MHN 005-4302); Jicaral (1 specimen, rock, 11/09/2007, MHN 005-4358); Dos Hermanas (7 specimens, rock, 08/08/2011, ICML-UNAM 10424); Harrys (7 specimens, rock, 9.1 m, 21/10/2011, ICML-UNAM 10436); Pomelo (3 specimens, rock, 8.9 m, 21/10/2011, ICML-UNAM 10446); Copal (3 specimens, rock, 9.1 m, 21/10/2011, ICML-UNAM 10441); Maguey (3 specimens, stony coral, 3.5 m, 06/09/2010, ICML-UNAM 10275); Manzanilla (11 specimens, rock, 03/12/2008, MHN 005-4308; 2 specimens, dead coral, 3 m, 18/05/2012, ICML-UNAM 10524); Isla Montosa (6 specimens, stony coral, 2.7 m, 22/02/2010, MHN 005-4382; 3 specimens, stony coral, 3.6 m, 22/02/2010, MHN 005-4392); Guerrilla (4 specimens, rock, 4.9 m, 18/05/2012, ICML-UNAM 10538); Copalita (3 specimens, rock, 9.1 m, 18/05/2012, ICML-UNAM 10532).