Neozoanthidae Herberts, 1972

Low, Martyn E. Y., Sinniger, Frederic & Reimer, James Davis, 2016, The order Zoantharia Rafinesque, 1815 (Cnidaria, Anthozoa: Hexacorallia): supraspecific classification and nomenclature, ZooKeys 641, pp. 1-80 : 4

Neozoanthidae Herberts, 1972

Neozoanthidae Herberts, 1972: 137.

Type genus.

Neozoanthus Herberts, 1972.

Gender.

Masculine.

Diagnosis.

Zooxanthellate, brachycnemic zoantharians with only partial incrustation in ectoderm, rarely extending to mesoglea, no incrustation around the top, oral ends of polyps ( Herberts 1972).

Remarks.

A monogeneric and monospecific family-group. This taxon was originally defined as "Zoanthaires à arrangement mésentérique de type brachycnémique et à sphincter endodermique" ( Herberts 1972: 137). However, recent work has further divided zoantharian sphincter muscles into ten different basic types; that of Neozoanthidae is discontiguous endodermal ( Swain et al. 2015). Thus, the above diagnosis has been slightly modified from that of Herberts’ (1972).

Recent molecular phylogenetic work calls into the question the validity of this family, as molecular data derived from Neozoanthus specimens cluster within the Zoanthidae radiation ( Reimer et al. 2011a). Incrustation does not extend to mesoglea and is only found in the ectoderm. The families Neozoanthidae and Zoanthidae are not synonymised herein, as the Neozoanthidae also has some phylogenetic relation with the Hydrozoanthidae and the relationships between these families will require additional research ( Reimer et al. 2011a).