Conglomeratusclera robusta (Tixier-Durivault, 1966)

Benayahu, Yehuda, Ofwegen, Leen P. van & McFadden, Catherine S., 2018, Evaluating the genus Cespitularia MilneEdwards & Haime, 1850 with descriptions of new genera of the family Xeniidae (Octocorallia, Alcyonacea), ZooKeys 754, pp. 63-101 : 82

Conglomeratusclera robusta (Tixier-Durivault, 1966) Figures 26, 27, 28

Cespitularia robusta Tixier-Durivault, 1966: 335-356; Janes 2008: 604-605.

Description.

Examination of the type material of Cespitularia robusta Tixier-Durivault, 1966 (MNH00000167) revealed five colonies (Figure 26), all in agreement with their original description. The tentacles bear two rows of pinnules along each side with an indication of a third row; the outermost row features 12-15 pinnules. The sclerites depicted in the original description are spheres and spherules, also in the form of aggregates (p. 356: fig. 321 C–N). The SEM images of the sclerites (Figure 27) reveal morphologies similar to those found in C. coerulea (see above), and therefore led us to assign the species to Conglomeratusclera n. gen instead of Cespitularia . Subsequent examination of C. robusta (RMNH Coel 38672), identified by Janes (2008), similarly confirmed his findings but based on the sclerite SEM images of that colony (Figure 28), the generic assignment is likewise changed to Conglomeratusclera .

The colonies assigned by us to C. coerulea feature one row of pinnules along the margins of the tentacles, whereas C. robusta has two rows. In order to determine whether a difference in pinnule-row count is indeed diagnostic for species delineation in Conglomeratusclera , corresponding fresh colonies with two pinnule-rows should be sequenced. Therefore, for the time being only the generic status of C. robusta is changed, making it the second species in the new genus.

Distribution.

Mayotte; Aride Island, Seychelles.