Deep-sea (> 1000 m) Goniasteridae (Valvatida; Asteroidea) from the North Pacific, including an overview of Sibogaster, Bathyceramaster n. gen. and three new species
Author
Mah, Christopher L.
text
Zootaxa
2016
4175
2
101
141
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.4175.2.1
d7cbc23a-7a4c-4616-83fd-059fb458f7b6
1175-5326
257286
B264C215-000D-42C5-8AC9-B801872CD182
GONIASTERIDAE
Forbes 1841
Taxonomic conventions in this paper follow those of Mah (2014b) including changes indicated by the molecular revision of the Valvatacea (
Mah & Foltz 2011
) which separate
Pseudarchaster
and the “pseudarchasterines” from the
Goniasteridae
. This is a classification which is also consistent with morphology-based cladistics (
Blake 1987
).
Full taxonomic descriptions for relevant hippasterines (
Evoplosoma
and
Hippasteria
) are reported in detail by
Mah et al. (2010
, 2014). For the sake of completeness, these taxa are included in the key and summarized briefly below by occurrence and other summary information.
The checklist below highlights all
Goniasteridae
with known occurrence below
1000 meter
depths from the west coast of
North America. Those
species with an (*) are new records which are described or noted herein.
Two
species,
Nymphaster diomedeae
and
Litonotaster tumidus
, both described by
Ludwig
(1905)
from more southern regions closer to the Baja and
Central California
and have not been encountered in the
North Pacific
.
However some deep-sea species described by
Ludwig (1905)
, such as
Pentagonaster
(=
Pillsburiaster
)
ernesti
and
Mediaster
(=
Bathyceramaster
n. gen.
)
elegans
were previously known only from the tropical
East Pacific
(off Baja and
Central
America, etc.) but have since been found farther north (as outlined below). Based on these further range extensions and the sometimes wide-ranging occurrence of lower-bathyal/abyssal species, these two species were included as a contingency, even though new records are not reported.
One included genus,
Sibogaster
includes two species with occurrence beyond the geographic limits of the current treatment with data for specimens in the central Tropical Pacific and the North Atlantic.
Although all species are included in the identification key and taxonomic summary, emphasis is placed on those taxa for which new information is available. Although all species are included in the identification key and taxonomic summary, not all taxa are figured or included for comprehensive taxonomic treatments. Hippasterines (
Evoplosoma
and
Hippasteria
) were documented in detail by Mah
et al.
(2014) and three of the
Ceramaster
s
pecies included were well-documented by
Fisher (1911)
. New occurrence records are indicated in
bold.
TABLE 1.
Checklist of North Pacific deep-sea
Goniasteridae
.
*
Bathyceramaster careyi
nov. gen, nov. sp.
*
Bathyceramaster
elegans
(
Ludwig, 1905
)
nov. gen, nov. comb.
Ceramaster clarki
Fisher, 1910
Ceramaster japonicus
(
Sladen, 1889
)
Ceramaster leptoceramus
(
Fisher, 1905
)
*
Ceramaster pointsurae
n. sp.
Evoplosoma claguei
Mah
et al.
, 2010
,
Evoplosoma voratus
Mah
et al.
, 2010
Hippasteria californica
Fisher, 1905
Hippasteria lepidonotus
(
Fisher, 1905
)
Hippasteria tiburoni
Mah
et al.
2014
Litonotaster tumidus
H.L. Clark, 1920
*
Mediaster aequalis
Stimpson 1857
*
Mediaster tenellus
Fisher, 1905
Nymphaster diomedeae
Ludwig, 1905
*
Pillsburiaster ernesti
(
Ludwig, 1905
)
*
Sibogaster nieseni
nov. sp.