Echinogorgia

Namin, Samimi & Ofwegen, Van, 2009, Some shallow water octocorals (Coelenterata: Anthozoa) of the Persian Gulf, Zootaxa 2058, pp. 1-52 : 13

Echinogorgia sp. a

( Figs. 7 b, 9–10)

Material: RMNH Coel. 38769, one colony, Farur Island, coll. S.A. Mohtarami.

Description. The colony is 22 cm wide and 11 cm high, and a holdfast is present ( Fig. 7 b). Branching is in one plane, anastomoses are frequent, forming a network. Polyps are situated all around the branches, the calyces are low, dome-shaped.

Polyps are retracted, with a collaret and points formed from flattened spindles, up to 0.20 mm long, with sparse tuberculation ( Fig. 9 a). The point spindles have one end slightly dentate.

Surface layer of the coenenchyme has thornscales, up to 0.40 mm long; additionally a few unilaterally spinose spindles are present ( Figs. 9 c, 10a–b). The inner layer has spindles, up to 0.40 mm long, many with one or two side branches ( Figs 9 b, 10c). Furthermore, small derivatives of capstans are present; length of these sclerites up to 0.10 mm ( Fig. 9 d).

Colour. Alive, the colony was purple in colour, preserved it is brown. Sclerites are colourless.

Remarks. According to Grasshoff (1999) Echinogorgia species with colourless sclerites are rare.

Figures

FIGURE 9. RMNH Coel. 38769, Echinogorgia sp. a: a polyp spindles; b, spindles of interior; c, thornscales of surface layer; d, capstan derivatives of the subsurface layer.

FIGURE 7. a, RMNH Coel. 38768, holotype of Astrogorgia fruticosa n. sp.; b, RMNH Coel. 38769, Echinogorgia sp. a; c, RMNH Coel. 38770, Echinogorgia sp. b; d, RMNH Coel. 38771, Echinogorgia sp. b. Scales 1 cm.