Cucusquama O’Loughlin, 2016

O’Loughlin, P. Mark, 2016, The Discovery Expedition sea cucumbers (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea), Memoirs of Museum Victoria 75, pp. 53-70 : 58

Cucusquama O’Loughlin gen. nov.

Zoobank LSID. http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:0BE9B60F-195B-4F04-A06A-7EAF0BAA9D44

Diagnosis. Cucumariinid genus; body sub-pentagonal in transverse section, fusiform; tentacles 10, short, lobed; calcareous ring cucumariid-like; complete calcareous body cover of imbricating, single-layered, perforated plates/scales, free ends point posteriorly; tube feet radial only, walls covered with scales; absence of cups and tables.

Type species and locality. Cucusquama wesafrica O’Loughlin sp. nov. (equatorial west Africa ). Monotypic.

Etymology. Named Cucu from the family name Cucumariidae , with recognition of cucumariid like characters, and squama from the Latin squama (meaning scale) with reference to the body cover of imbricating scales.

Remarks. The sub-pentagonal form, complete body cover of imbricating scales, 10 short lobed tentacles, and radial series of tube feet is a unique combination of morphological characters within family Cucumariidae . We reluctantly establish a new monotypic genus.