Aglaophenia kirchenpaueri ( Heller, 1868 )

Gravili, Cinzia, Vito, Doris De, Camillo, Cristina Gioia Di, Martell, Luis, Piraino, Stefano & Boero, Ferdinando, 2015, The non-Siphonophoran Hydrozoa (Cnidaria) of Salento, Italy with notes on their life-cycles: an illustrated guide, Zootaxa 3908 (1), pp. 1-187 : 76-78

Aglaophenia kirchenpaueri ( Heller, 1868)

Fig. 52 A–D

See Svoboda & Cornelius (1991) for a complete synonymy.

Material examined. HCUS-S 0 58 and HCUS-S 0 59 (Hydrozoa Collection, University of Salento—fauna of the Salento Peninsula).

Description (based on our own observations; Svoboda 1979; Svoboda & Cornelius 1991):

Hydroid. Hydrorhiza as much branched stolons; colonies erect, pinnate; hydrocauli, monosiphonic, up to 200 mm, high basal part of the axis without thecae, followed by up to 3 prosegments each with a frontal nematotheca, remaining internodes with 3 nematothecae and a pseudonematotheca, nodes oblique; hydrocladia alternate, closely set, each cormidium with one hydrotheca and 3 nematothecae (one median inferior and 2 lateral ones), nodes transverse; hydrotheca not deep (length/breadth at rim: 1–1.3), with a greatly developed transverse abcauline septum recurved at the tip, rim with 9 marginal cusps, first pair on both sides longest, remaining marginal cusps grading towards axis of cormidium; median nematotheca not surpassing hydrothecal rim, 2/3 adnate, lateral nematothecae projecting slightly above hydrothecal rim, distal portion curved outwards, aperture of median and lateral nematothecae gutter-shaped; male corbulae partially open, usually without free costae, female ones usually closed and with free costa, colonies dioecious. Colours: hydrocauli yellowish to brown, hydrocladia and corbulae yellow or brown.

Cnidome. Microbasic mastigophores.

Habitat type. A. kirchenpaueri is a shelf and littoral species, found from almost the tidal level to 120 m depth in the Mediterranean Sea ( Boero & Fresi 1986; Gili 1986; Templado et al. 1986; Svoboda & Cornelius 1991; Peña Cantero & García Carrascosa 2002), with a maximum depth at 373 m reported by Ramil and Vervoort (1992) around the Strait of Gibraltar.

Substrate. Hard substrates such as rock, coralline algae, gorgonians and barnacles but recorded seldom also on Cystoseira .

Seasonality. Reported, in the Mediterranean Sea, from January to December (Bouillon et al. 2004); from May to August, October and November in Salento waters (De Vito 2006; Piraino et al. 2013; this study).

Reproductive period. In the Mediterranean Sea, February ( Picard 1955; Boero & Fresi 1986); April ( Picard 1955; Gili 1986); May ( Rossi 1961; Gili 1986); May–June, October (De Vito 2006; this study); August ( Picard 1951b; Roca 1986); September ( Picard 1951b; Boero & Fresi 1986), and November ( Rossi 1971; Boero & Fresi 1986).

Distribution. Northeastern Atlantic from British coasts to Cape Verde Islands, Mediterranean ( Svoboda 1979; Svoboda & Cornelius 1991; Ramil & Vervoort 1992; Medel & Vervoort 1995; Medel & López-González 1996; Ansín Agís et al. 2001; Peña Cantero & García Carrascosa 2002; Bouillon et al. 2004; Galea 2007; Gravili et al. 2008a; Puce et al. 2009; Soto Ãngel & Peña Cantero 2013).

Records in Salento. Moderately frequent at Otranto (De Vito 2006; Gravili 2006; Gravili et al. 2008a; Stabili et al. 2008; Ventura 2011; Piraino et al. 2013; this study).

Remarks. Colonies exposed to low current velocities may attain heights of up to 200 mm, conversely colonies growing in rapid currents remain short ( Svoboda & Cornelius 1991).

References. Heller (1868) as Plumularia kirchenpaueri ; Stechow (1919, 1923) as A. septifera ; Leloup (1934), Riedl (1959, 1966, 1970, 1991) as A. septifera ; Picard (1958a), Rossi (1961, 1971), Svoboda (1979), Boero & Fresi (1986), Svoboda & Cornelius (1991), Ramil & Vervoort (1992), Cornelius (1995), Medel & Vervoort (1995), Medel & López-González (1996), Piraino et al. (1999), Ansín Agís et al. (2001), Peña Cantero & García Carrascosa (2002), Bouillon et al. (2004), De Vito (2006), Gravili (2006), Galea (2007), Gravili et al. (2008a), Stabili et al. (2008), Puce et al. (2009), Piraino et al. (2013).

Figures

FIGURE 52. Aglaophenia kirchenpaueri: A, general view of a colony; B, basal part of caulus; C, hydrothecae and associated nematothecae (B, C same scale bar); D, corbula (drawn by C. G. Di Camillo). Scale bars: A, 10 mm; B, C, 0.5 mm; D, 1.0 mm.