Two New Species of Zoanthids from Southern California and Southern Australia by Nick Philipp Division Invertebrate Zoology KUMNH Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Sponsored by Dr. Daphne Fautin Dawson-photo.com

What’s the Issue? -2 unidentified zoanthid species -Southern California -Southern Australia -What are their names? Parazoanthus lucificum Steve Murvine 10 Sept. 2006

-Epizoanthus scotinus Wood, Species name is NOT named after describer! -Species name -Matches gender of genus, Latinized, 2 or more letters -May describe the species in some way -May honor someone (Phialella zappai Boero, 1982) -May refer to the place it was discovered What’s in a name? Species nameGenus name Describer and year published Boero, 1982

How to go about this… 1st - What are zoanthids? 2 nd - What characters define zoanthid groups? To what groups do these unidentified species belong? 3 rd - Are these unidentified animals new species? One of them? Both of them? How do new species get names?

What are zoanthids? -Marine cnidarian polyps -Defining Characters Single cycle of short tentacles Unpaired mesenteries added in couples Weak retractor muscles –Sand incorporating Parazoanthus axinellae wetwebmedia.com

What characters define zoanthid groups?  Phylum  Class  Order  Family  Genus  Species

What characters define zoanthid groups? Phylum - Cnidaria Class - Anthozoa Order - Zoanthidea  Family  Genus  Species

Diversity of Cnidaria Scyphozoa –Jellyfish Proper Cubozoa –Box Jellyfish Hydrozoa Anthozoa –Stony corals, anemones, soft corals, zoanthids Carybdea alata B. Hamner Macrorhynchia philippina © Declan McCullagh planula.com n2blue.com okono.com

Phylum Cnidaria Defining Characteristic Produce nematocysts Microscopic stinging capsules J.S. Ryland et al © Declan McCullagh

What characters define zoanthid groups? Phylum – Cnidaria - Produce nematocysts Class - Anthozoa Order - Zoanthidea  Family  Genus  Species

Class Anthozoa Mesenteries –Radial projections of the body wall into the body cavity Actinopharynx –Throat-like structure leading from the mouth into the body cavity Anthozoan cross-section

What characters define zoanthid groups? Phylum – Cnidaria - Produce nematocysts Class – Anthozoa - Mesenteries, Actinopharynx Order – Zoanthidea -Single cycle tentacles, unpaired mesenteries  Sub-Order  Family  Genus  Species

Brachycnemina vs. Macrocnemina 1-“In Brachycnemina the fifth couple from the absulcal directive are imperfect…” (Ryland et al., 2003) 2-“In Macrocnemina, the fifth couple are perfect.” (Ryland et al., 2003) 12

Macrocnemina it is! Fifth couple is complete. Other characters of Macrocnemina (J.S. Ryland et al.) –Wide geographic and bathymetric ranges –Often live on other marine invertebrates for added support Parazoanthus lucificum Steve Murvine 10 Sept. 2006

What characters define zoanthid groups? Phylum – Cnidaria - Produce nematocysts Class – Anthozoa - Mesenteries, Actinopharynx Order – Zoanthidea -Single cycle tentacles, unpaired mesenteries Sub-Order – Macrocnemina - Fifth couple is complete  Family  Genus  Species

Family? Macrocnemina is composed of 2 families: –Epizoanthidae Single, mesogleal sphincter muscle –Parazoanthidae Single, endodermal sphincter muscle

What characters define zoanthid groups? Phylum – Cnidaria - Produce nematocysts Class – Anthozoa - Mesenteries, Actinopharynx Order – Zoanthidea -Single cycle tentacles, unpaired mesenteries Sub-Order – Macrocnemina - Fifth couple is complete  Family - ? - Location of the sphincter muscle  Genus - ?  Species - ?

The next step… Make sections using histological techniques –Determine where the sphincter muscle is located The characters used to define genera differ in each family –Once I know the families, I can look further into the genera –Once genera are determined, if in fact new species, they get names

How I am going about this… 1st - What are zoanthids? 2 nd - To what groups do these unidentified species belong? 3 rd - Are these unidentified animals new species?

How I am going about this… 1st - What are zoanthids? –Cnidarian polyps with a single cycle of short tentacles, unpaired mesenteries and weak retractor muscles. 2 nd - To what groups do these unidentified species belong? 3 rd - Are these unidentified animals new species?

How I am going about this… 1st - What are zoanthids? –Defined as having single cycle of short tentacles, unpaired mesenteries and weak retractor muscles. 2 nd - To what groups do these unidentified species belong? 3 rd - Are these unidentified animals new species?

How I am going about this… 1st - What are zoanthids? –Defined as having single cycle of short tentacles, unpaired mesenteries and weak retractor muscles. 2 nd - To what groups do these unidentified species belong? - Found down to level of sub-order, Macrocnemina. - Can now determine family, genus and species. 3 rd - Are these unidentified animals new species?

How I am going about this… 1st - What are zoanthids? –Defined as having single cycle of short tentacles, unpaired mesenteries and weak retractor muscles. 2 nd - To what groups do these unidentified species belong? - Found down to level of sub-order, Macrocnemina. - Can now determine family, genus and species. 3 rd - Are these unidentified animals new species?

How I am going about this… 1st - What are zoanthids? –Defined as having single cycle of short tentacles, unpaired mesenteries and weak retractor muscles. 2 nd - To what groups do these unidentified species belong? - Found down to level of sub-order, Macrocnemina. - Can now determine family, genus and species. 3 rd - Are these unidentified animals new species? –If there is enough difference from known species, each undescribed species gets a name.

Works Cited Ryland, J.S., and Lancaster, J.E., 2003, Revision of methods for separating species of Protopalythoa (Hexacorallia: Zoanthidea) in the tropical West Pacific, Invertebrate Systematics, 17, Photo websites –week.divebums.com/2006/sep /index.html – – – – –