Ophionereis squamulosa Koehler, 1914

Gondim, Anne I., Alonso, Carmen, Dias, Thelma L. P., Manso, Cynthia L. C. & Christoffersen, Martin L., 2013, A taxonomic guide to the brittle-stars (Echinodermata, Ophiuroidea) from the State of Paraiba continental shelf, Northeastern Brazil, ZooKeys 307, pp. 45-96 : 63

Ophionereis squamulosa Koehler, 1914 Figure 9 f–j

Description.

Disk circular (dd = 2.46 to 5.33 mm). Covered by numerous small and imbricating scales (Fig. 9f). Radial shields small, narrow and widely separated. Dark blotches on aboral surface of disk. Disk scales extending onto first brachial segment. Ventral interradius covered by scales similar to dorsal ones (Fig. 9g). Oral shields oval (Fig. 9h). Adoral shields enlarged laterally. Four oral papillae on each side of jaw angle (Fig. 9h). One pair of apical papillae. Dorsal arm plates longer than wide, proximal margin enlarged and distal margin narrow. Accessory dorsal arm plates well developed (Fig. 9f, i). Ventral arm plates slightly longer than wide (Fig. 9j). Three arm spines slightly flattened, with blunt tip (Fig. 9i, j). Single large tentacle scale.

Distribution.

The Bahamas, the islands off southern Florida, the Antilles, Mexican Caribbean, Belize, Panama, and Brazil ( Hendler et al. 1995, Abreu-Pérez et al. 2005, Trujillo-Luna and González-Vallejo 2006, Alvarado et al. 2008). In Brazil from Amapá ( Albuquerque 1986), Paraíba ( H.L. Clark 1915), Pernambuco ( Albuquerque 1986), Alagoas ( Miranda et al. 2012), Bahia ( Manso et al. 2008), Abrolhos off southern Bahia ( Tommasi 1970), and Rio de Janeiro ( Manso 1993). From 1 to 40 m. Recorded between 12 and 30 m in this study.

Remarks.

Known from bottoms of sand, gravel, dead shells ( Tommasi 1970), and seagrass beds. This species has yolky, non-feeding vitellaria larvae ( Hendler et al. 1995). Although similar to Ophionereis reticulata , Ophionereis squamulosa differs in color-pattern, maximum size, and often size and shape of the accessory dorsal arm plates ( Thomas 1973). Yet according to Thomas (1973), Ophionereis squamulosa has a difuse, poorly delineated reticulate pattern on the disk and light arm bands separed by a single arm segments. Unfortunately our material is do not retained such features, being not possible to accurately observe their reticulate pattern of the disc.