The non-Siphonophoran Hydrozoa (Cnidaria) of Salento, Italy with notes on their life-cycles: an illustrated guide
Author
Gravili, Cinzia
Author
Vito, Doris De
Author
Camillo, Cristina Gioia Di
Author
Martell, Luis
Author
Piraino, Stefano
Author
Boero, Ferdinando
text
Zootaxa
2015
3908
1
1
187
journal article
42365
10.11646/zootaxa.3908.1.1
6f1d1977-6b97-4789-828c-76ed250cf1ae
1175-5326
242729
D6AD2B49-170B-4D9C-84AA-DBE0FEEAD8BE
Pachycordyle pusilla
(
Motz-Kossowska, 1905
)
Fig. 7
A, B
See
Schuchert (2004)
for a complete synonymy.
Material examined.
HCUS-S 0 0 7 (Hydrozoa Collection, University of Salento—fauna of the Salento Peninsula).
Description
(based on our own observations;
Motz-Kossowska 1905
;
Schuchert 2004
):
Hydroid.
Hydrorhiza as creeping, smooth, mostly linear stolons; colonies mostly stolonal, up to
2 mm
; hydrocaulus as hydranth pedicel, unbranched or rarely branched once, with thick, double-layered and basally annulated perisarc, widening distally into a shallow funnel; hydranth slightly club-shaped when fully relaxed, 0.7–1.2 mm long; hypostome high, dome-shaped; with 12–16 filiform tentacles scattered through distal half or in 3 whorls. Gonophores as fixed sporosacs, ovoid to elongated, covered by loose, thin periderm, fixed sporosacs, borne distally on hydranth pedicels, 1–4 per pedicel; without radial or circular canals; no velum; simple spadix present, proximal gastrodermal chamber large. Females with 4, occasionally 5, eggs in a single tier. Colours: eggs uncoloured, clear.
Cnidome.
desmonemes and microbasic euryteles.
Habitat
type
.
Phanerogames in sea water of normal salinity (depth range:
0–30 m
) (
Boero & Fresi 1986
;
Schuchert 2004
; Puce
et al.
2009).
Substrate.
Phanerogames
(
Posidonia oceanica
and
Zostera
leaves,
Cymodocea nodosa
), algae, concretions.
Seasonality.
March, April, August, October, December (
Boero & Fresi 1986
); January (Puce
et al.
2009) in the Ligurian Sea.
Reproductive period.
Along the Mediterranean French coast (
Motz-Kossowska 1905
) reproductive colonies occur in August and May (
Schuchert 2004
), October in the Ligurian Sea (
Boero & Fresi 1986
),
Distribution.
Endemic to the Mediterranean (
Morri 1980a
as
C. pusilla
;
Medel & López-González 1996
; Bouillon
et al.
2004;
Schuchert 2004
;
Gravili
et al.
2008a
).
Records in Salento.
Rare at Otranto (this study).
Remarks.
Schuchert (2004)
used the new combination
Pachycordyle pusilla
(
Motz-Kossowska, 1905
)
. Reproduction, in this species, leads to reduction of hydranths (
Leloup 1930
).
References.
Motz-Kossowska (1905)
as
Cordylophora pusilla
;
Leloup (1930)
,
Picard & Roch (1949)
both as
Tubiclava pusilla
;
Picard (1958a)
,
Boero (1981a)
,
Medel & López-González (1996)
all as
Cordylophora pusilla
;
Schuchert (2004)
as
Pachycordyle pusilla
(
Motz-Kossowska, 1905
)
comb. nov.
; Gravili (2006),
Gravili
et al.
(2008a)
, Puce
et al
. (2009).