Nidalia occidentalis Gray, 1835

Devictor, Susan T. & Morton, Steve L., 2010, Identification guide to the shallow water (0 - 200 m) octocorals of the South Atlantic Bight 2599, Zootaxa 2599 (1), pp. 1-62 : 31-32

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.2599.1.1

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10538766

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03A887A7-FFD0-7D50-2A81-F9746757FD88

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Nidalia occidentalis Gray, 1835
status

 

Nidalia occidentalis Gray, 1835 View in CoL

( Figure 30C,D View FIGURE 30 )

Nidalia occidentalis Gray 1835:60 View in CoL .— Deichmann 1936: 56; Plate 1 fig. 3[sic. 5]; Plate 4 figs. 1–3.— Utinomi 1958:102; Figs. 1–3 View FIGURE 1 View FIGURE 2 View FIGURE 3 .— Bayer 1961:53; Figs. 9h View FIGURE 9 , 10a–c View FIGURE 10 .— Verseveldt 1978:45.— Verseveldt and Bayer 1988:59; Figs. 42e–g View FIGURE 42 , 45 View FIGURE 45 , 47b View FIGURE 47 , 52, 53. — Cairns et al. 2002:33.

Material examined. SERTC S 1384, 63 m, off Anastasia Island , FL, August 30, 2004 . S 2325, 92 m, off Charleston , South Carolina, April 12, 1974 . S 2788, 60 m, off Anastasia Island , Florida, August 31, 2004 .

Remarks. Nidalia occidentalis is easily distinguishable from other octocorals in the SAB by its stiff, barren stalk and capitate head bearing the monomorphic polyps and conical calyces. The stalk bears large (up to 1 mm), slightly curved, tuberculated spindles while the anthocodiae contain smaller needle-like rods in a collaret and points arrangement, and small flat platelets. The large spindles are six times longer than wide, a feature that distinguishes N. occidentalis from N. rigida , which bears thicker spindles. In life, one SERTC Nidalia occidentalis specimen had an orange stalk and red terminus bearing white polyps. In the preserved state the colors are slightly duller. The examined specimens reach 20 mm in length.

Atlantic distribution: North Carolina to French Guiana, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, 37–440 m (one record off Venezuela indicates collection from 914 m) ( Deichmann, 1936; Bayer 1961; Verseveldt 1978; NMNH collections; SERTC collection).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Cnidaria

Class

Anthozoa

Order

Alcyonacea

Family

Nidaliidae

Genus

Nidalia

Loc

Nidalia occidentalis Gray, 1835

Devictor, Susan T. & Morton, Steve L. 2010
2010
Loc

Nidalia occidentalis

Cairns, S. D. & Calder, D. R. & Brinckmann-Voss, A. & Castro, C. B. & Fautin, D. G. & Pugh, P. R. & Mills, C. E. & Jaap, W. C. & Arai, M. N. & Haddock, S. H. D. & Opresko, D. M. 2002: 33
Verseveldt, J. & Bayer, F. M. 1988: 59
Verseveldt, J. 1978: 45
Bayer, F. M. 1961: 53
Utinomi, H. 1958: 102
Deichmann, E. 1936: 56
Gray, J. E. 1835: 60
1835
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