A new species of Anthopleura (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Actiniaria) from the Mexican Pacific

Author(s)

Vassallo-Avalos, Aurora ; Gonzalez-Munoz, Ricardo ; Morrone, Juan J. ; Acuna, Fabian H. ; Duran-Fuentes, Jeferson A. ; Stampar, Sergio N. ; Solis-Marin, Francisco A. ; Rivas, Gerardo

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: MARINE BIODIVERSITY; v. 54, n. 5, p. 20-pg., 2024-10-01.

Abstract

Anthopleura is one of the most speciose genera within the family Actiniidae. This genus is particularly characterized by its members having both verrucae on the column and acrorhagi on the margin. In the region of the Baja California Peninsula, in the Mexican Pacific, six species of Anthopleura have been documented, which are relatively well defined by their morphological characteristics and coloration patterns. During recent visits to the intertidal zone of Cerritos, in Baja California Sur, we found individuals of Anthopleura displaying a variety of colorations that do not agree with known species for the region. We collected and examined specimens of four morphotypes of Anthopleura, analyzing them by integrating information about their external and internal anatomy, as well as their cnidome. Additionally, we obtained and analyzed genetic sequences from mitochondrial and nuclear markers through phylogenetic analyses. Our results reveal that the four morphotypes belong to a single, and undescribed species of Anthopleura. We provide a detailed description of the species Anthopleura variata sp. nov., which is characterized by a variety of coloration patterns, as well as having a circumscribed, palmate, and pedunculate marginal sphincter muscle, harboring zooxanthellae, and lacking directive mesenteries, among other characteristics. Anthopleura variata sp. nov. is the 49th species in the genus and the seventh species of Anthopleura documented for the Mexican Pacific. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 20/16589-7 - Biogeographical patterns of the sea anemone species Actinostella flosculifera (Le Sueur, 1817) (Cnidaria; Anthozoa; Actiniaria) and a population study of the coasts of eastern Central and South America and the Canary Islands
• Grantee: Jeferson Alexis Durán Fuentes
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• FAPESP's process: 22/09430-7 - Phylogeographic, genomic and transcriptomic analyses of Actinostella flosculifera (Le Sueur, 1817) (Cnidaria; Anthozoa; Actiniaria) and a population study of the East coasts of Central and South America and West Africa
• Grantee: Jeferson Alexis Durán Fuentes
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• FAPESP's process: 19/03552-0 - Reproductive, behavioral and genomic patterns in Ceriantharia (Cnidaria): a step towards understanding marine evolution
• Grantee: Sérgio Nascimento Stampar
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 22/16193-1 - Biology, ecology and systematics of Sea-anemones lato sensu (Anthozoa, Actiniaria and Ceriantharia) in Atlantic Ocean
• Grantee: Sérgio Nascimento Stampar
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Regular Research Grants