Ailsastra eleaumei, O'Loughlin & Rowe, 2005

O'Loughlin, P. Mark & Rowe, Francis W. E., 2005, A new asterinid genus from the Indo-West Pacific region, including five new species (Echinodermata: Asteroidea: Asterinidae), Memoirs of Museum Victoria 62 (2), pp. 181-189 : 188

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.24199/j.mmv.2005.62.6
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03AE7635-470D-2037-FE88-66E7FF4DF913
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Ailsastra eleaumei
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Ailsastra eleaumei View in CoL sp. nov.

Figures 1 View Figure 1 , 2d View Figure 2 , 3d View Figure 3 , 5a–c View Figure 5

Material examined. Holotype (dry). Mauritius ( Île Maurice), MAU 74- 12, Peyrot-Clausade , 1974, MNHN EcAs 11843.

Paratype (dry, part dissected). Type locality, MAU 74-13, MNHN EcAs 11844 .

Diagnosis. Ailsastra with, at R = 7.5 mm, discrete, short, strongly tapered rays, R/r about 1.6; frequent bowl-shaped arrangement of numerous, small, thin, webbed spinelets on abactinal plates, up to 0.17 mm long; 4 longitudinal series of papulae across mid-ray; up to 5 interradial actinal spines per plate; longitudinal alignment of spines on some distal actinal plates.

Description. Integument not evident; rays 6 (holotype), 5 (paratype), R up to 7.5 mm; rays discrete, short, strongly tapered, rounded distally, R/r about 1.6; single madreporite, not fissiparous; abactinal gonopores. Carinal series of plates variably narrowly evident below adcarinal plates, doubly papulate, other abactinal ray plates lacking papular indentation, single longitudinal series of non-carinal papulae on each upper side of rays, 4 longitudinal series of papulae across mid-ray; disc not delineated; spinelets glassy, thin, subsacciform to conical, finely splay-pointed, up to about 20 spinelets in 2 webbed series across proximal edge of plate, frequently in bowl-shaped series around periphery of projecting plate, up to about 0.17 mm long, up to 8 in subpaxilliform tuft on distal interradial plates; proximal and distal spinelets subequal; up to about 10 webbed spinelets around periphery of each superomarginal plate, up to about 16 longer spinelets on each inferomarginal plate, most in peripheral webbed series on abactinal surface of plate, few on actinal surface. Some non-plated areas actinally. Actinal spines per plate: oral 4; suboral 0; furrow 3; subambulacral 3; adradial actinal 1–3; interradial 1–3, up to 5 distally, sometimes in longitudinal alignment; interradial spines sacciform, thin, pointed.

Distribution. Mauritius ( Île Maurice).

Etymology. Named in recognition of Marc Eleaume of the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, who has graciously assisted the authors with information and the loan of materials for echinoderm research.

Remarks. The carinal plate arrangement, oral structure, and absence of superambulacral and superactinal plates are consistent with the type species. Variable ray number is common amongst asterinid species, and the predominant ray number for A. eleaumei is not evident. Molecular data are not available for A. eleaumei .