Ophiopristis 4535

F 101735.

Family - Ophiacanthidae.

Description

The disc is flat, 5 mm diameter. The radial shields are covered. The dorsal surface is covered by plates, bearing spines/granules, with a visible diameter of 0.2–0.3 mm, overlapping; primary plates not visible. Disc spines or granules of one type, cylindrical and pointed, with 2 terminal points/thorns or 3 terminal points/thorns, and glassy transparent shaft, with thorns all over. The spines are up to 0.4–0.5 mm long, and 5–8 times high as wide; densely distributed.

The ventral interradial surface is plated. The oral shields are exposed, fan shaped, wider than long. The adoral shields are exposed, extending to lateral edge of oral shield, separated radially, meeting interradially. Bursal slits extend from the oral shield to the disc margin, not bordered by spines or papillae. The jaw is as wide as long, with one, rounded apical papilla, as wide as long, with thorns. Oral papillae are present along each jaw angle in a series, pointed or quadrangular. The oral tentacle pore is located out of the jaw on top of the ventral disc, with a ring of scales surrounding the pore.

The specimen has five arms, unbranched, moniliform, 4–6 times d.d. Dorsal arm plates, separated, without spines/granules; fan-shaped, and 0.65–0.75 times long as wide. The second ventral arm plates are contiguous with the third plate, fan-shaped, notched or concave laterally, and 0.9–1.1 times long as wide. Ventral arm plates of the first free segments separated or contiguous, oval (pointed proximally), notched or concave laterally, and 1–1.4 times long as wide. Tentacle pores along the arm, with one scale, not covering the pore, oval. There are 2–3 arm spines on the first ventral segment, 4–5 on the first free segments. The spines are erect, extending around to the dorsal surface, subequal or longest dorsally, and 1–2 times as long as one arm segment, blunt, flattened. There are thorns, in longitudinal series on the surface from the base to the tip of the spine, all along the spine, glassy transparent shaft.

Description exported from Delta key and to be finalised when DNA sampling completed. Note species description and image characters may vary slightly in animals of different size within the same species.

Cite this publication as: "T O'Hara (2010). ‘Ophiuroids from deep sea southern Australia. Museum Victoria. Version: 1.0 http://www.museumvictoria.com.au/stars"
Information updated 5 February 2010

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