Black Corals (Anthozoa: Antipatharia) from the Southwestern Atlantic Author Lima, Manuela M. Author Cordeiro, Ralf T. S. Author Perez, Carlos D. text Zootaxa 2019 2019-11-05 4692 1 1 67 journal article 24975 10.11646/zootaxa.4692.1.1 ead7ec31-b9d4-49f3-a006-a67fff6ad623 1175-5326 3528942 F054DC68-6A7E-4C80-9094-8ECCA4502CD6 Genus Schizopathes Brook, 1889 Type-species. Schizopathes crassa Brook, 1889 (original designation by inference, see Opresko, 1997:158 ). Diagnosis. Corallum monopodial and pinnulate, unattached, with hook-like holdfast for support in soft sediments. Pinnules simple, bilateral and alternate. Spines simple, triangular, compressed. Polyps 3–6 mm in transverse diameter ( Opresko, 2002 ). Remarks. The genus Schizopathes Brook, 1889 is the only one, within the order, to harbor species that do not depend on hard substrates for fixation, presenting a modified hook for support in soft bottoms ( Wagner, 2015 ; Opresko, 1997 ). Some species of the genus Alternatipathes , and in particular, A . alternata (Brook) are almost identical to species of Schizopathes with the exception that they have a basal holdfast for attaching to hard substrates. Distribution. Cosmopolitan ( Molodtsova, 2014 ).