Ophiothamnus biocal

F 112107.

Family - Ophiacanthidae.

Description

The disc is flat.

The oral shields are exposed, circular or triangular, as long as wide. The adoral shields are exposed, extending to lateral edge of oral shield or dsital to lateral edge of oral shield, separated radially, meeting interradially. Bursal slits absent. The jaw is wider than long, with one, pointed or tapering apical papilla, as wide as long. Oral papillae are present along each jaw angle in a series, pointed or quadrangular. The oral tentacle pore is located inside the jaw, with distal oral papilla enlarged, and quadrangular.

The specimen has five arms, unbranched, moniliform, 10–14 times d.d. Dorsal arm plates, separated, without spines/granules; oval or fan-shaped (tending to squashed teardrops), and 0.55–1 times long as wide. Tentacle pores along the arm, with one scale, not covering the pore, pointed. There are 0 arm spines on the first ventral segment, 6–7 on the first free segments. The spines are erect, extending laterally, subequal, and 1–2 times as long as one arm segment, pointed, cylindrical. 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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