Ophiotreta valenciennesi (Lyman, 1879)

Mills, V. Sadie & O'Hara, Timothy D., 2013, Ophiuroids (Echinodermata; Ophiuroidea) of biogenic habitats on the continental shelf of New Zealand, Zootaxa 3613 (5), pp. 401-444 : 420

Ophiotreta valenciennesi (Lyman, 1879)

Ophiacantha Valenciennesi Lyman, 1879: 57 –58, pl. 15 (408–410).—Lyman, 1882: 183–184, pl. 26 (7–8).—Koehler, 1904: 110–111.—Clark, H.L., 1917a: 434.—Koehler, 1907a: 292.

Ophiacantha bisquamata Matsumoto, 1915: 62 –63.—Clark, H.L., 1915: 206.—Matsumoto, 1917: 120–122, fig. 31.—Murakami, 1944: 251.—Clark, A.H., 1949: 17 [synonymised by O'Hara & Stöhr, 2006].

Ophiotreta valenciennesi .—Koehler, 1922: 84, pl. 16(4), 93(6).—Koehler, 1930: 66–67 (in part).—Mortensen, 1933c: fig. 19b, 21i. —O'Hara & Stöhr, 2006: 62–63, fig. 5a–d, 17 p.

Ophiotreta bisquamata .—Koehler, 1930: 64–65.

Material Examined. Bay of Islands. TAN0906/178, NIWA 57071 (4). East Coast North Island. TAN1108/253, NIWA 77876 (1).

Comparative Material. Ophiotreta valenciennesi (Lyman, 1879) : NZOI/P239, Gascoyne Seamount, 36° 41.502´S, 156° 11.502´E, 140 m, 20/10/1977, NIWA 77750 (1). TAN0616/12, Hikurangi Margin, 40° 2.418´S, 178° 8.67´E to 40° 2.652´S, 178° 8.91´E, 749–787 m, 4/11/2006, NIWA 45906 (2). NZOI/ I94, off Norfolk Island, 29° 20.202´S, 168° 10.8´E, 308 m, 24/7/1975, NIWA 79560 (1). TAN0205/74, Giggenbach Seamount, 30° 2.12´S, 178° 43.073´W, 165– 141 m, 23/4/2002, NIWA 4592 (1).

Diagnosis. Disc covered in short, microscopically thorny, conical granules. Small distal area of radial shields exposed. Six smooth, flattened arm spines with square, microscopically thorny tips. Uppermost arm spine longest, up to 4 arm segments. Two oval tentacle scales, outer scale slightly larger.

Description. See O'Hara & Stöhr (2006).

Distribution. New Zealand (88–1105 m), Tasman Sea (132–700 m), NW Australia (110–400 m), New Caledonia (243–468 m), Fiji (255–441 m), Papua New Guinea /Solomon Is (350–412 m), Indonesia (204–1901 m), Philippines (311–465 m), Japan (140–158 m), Hawaii (73–583 m).

Remarks. This widespread upper slope Indo-Pacific species is reported from the New Zealand region for the first time. It has been collected along the north-east coast from Northland to the Hikurangi Margin, as well as from around islands and seamounts on the Kermadec and Norfolk Ridges and the Tasmantid seamount chain, east of Australia. The preserved specimen from the east coast north island has a mottled black and white pattern on the dorsal disc, and a white stripe running along the midline of the dorsal arm plates.