Sipunculans and Echiurans of Isla del Coco (Cocos Island), Costa Rica
Author
Vargas, Rita
Author
Kawauchi, Gisele Y.
text
Zootaxa
2010
2557
60
68
journal article
47782
10.5281/zenodo.196936
a2d81a5c-6c54-40d9-946d-86fa5224d0fd
1175-5326
196936
Thalassema steinbecki
Fisher, 1946
Material examined
. Silverado,
25 May 2008
, one specimen,
15 mm
.
Description.
Members of the Echiuran family
Echiuridae
possess an unbranched proboscis and sac-like anal vescicles and they also do not display sexual dimorphism. The genus
Thalassema
is characterized as
Echiuridae
with one to three pairs of gonoducts, no anal setae, elongate or spirally coiled gonostomal lips are lacking and longitudinal muscles are not in bands.
Thalassema steinbecki
has two pairs of gonoducts a rectal caecum, and smooth gonostomal lips forming an incomplete circle. This specimen is in poor shape and only a few weak papillae were seen just posterior to the proboscis which is subequal in length to the body.
Habitat.
Subtidal calcareous rock,
11m
.
Remarks.
Dean and Cutler (1998)
first recorded this species from the Gulf of Nicoya in Pacific
Costa Rica
.
Distribution.
Thalassema steinbecki
has been reported in the eastern Pacific from
Ecuador
to California (Dean 2009).