Octocorals (Coelenterata:Octocorallia) in the collection of Department of Marine Sciences, the University of the Ryukyus (Part 1)

概要

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About 200 specimens of octocoral are deposited at the Department of Marine Sciences, the University of the Ryukyus. These specimens were collected from shallow habitats in Palau, the Philippines and the Ryukyu Islands, but also some rare deep water samples are in storage. A classification of 113 specimens showed they belonged to 15 genera in six families in the order Alcyonacea, namely: Clavularia, Pachyclavularia, Tubipora, Cladiella, Lobophytum, Sarcophyton, Sinularia, Capnella, Lemnalia, Nephthea, Paralemnalia, Stereonephthya, Nidalia, Heteroxenia and Xenia. This report is the first of a series based on the collection and describes each genera providing photographs of colony morphology and illustrations of sclerites and individual polyps. Fourteen genera except for genus Nephthea of the family Nephtheidae are based on the specimens collected from the Ryukyu Islands. Stereonephthya of the family Nephtheidae and Heteroxenia of the family Xeniidae are new records from this region. Descriptions on outer morphology and sclerites are presented for all 15 genera together with photographs and illustrations for the convenience of the general biologists.