Smittoidea celestinoi Souto, Berning & Ostrovsky, 2016, n. sp.

Abstract

Smittoidea celestinoi n. sp. (Figs 95–98, Table 17) Material examined. Holotype: MNCN 25.03 / 3964, locality DR05. Paratypes: MNCN 25.03 / 3965, locality DR05, MNCN 25.03 / 3966, locality DR04; OLL 2015 / 912, locality DR02; OLL 2015 / 913, locality DR04. Etymology. Honorific for the first author's father, Celestino Souto-Dopico. Description. Colony encrusting, unilaminar, pluri- to multiserial, forming small patch or linear runner. Zooids elongate-oval to hexagonal or triangular, often widest in proximal third, separated by shallow grooves or ridges; frontal shield only very slightly convex, producing 2 steeply rising flaps lateral to orifice, forming peristome that incorporates suboral avicularium within proximomedian notch; surface of frontal shield nodular, large central area imperforate with 1–2 two rows of densely spaced areolae along zooecial margins; vertical walls extensive, with 1 or more uniporous septula per lateral wall. Orifice suboval, distinctly longer than wide, distal margin usually with 4 oral spines (rarely 3) in adult zooids and up to 7 spines in early astogenetic zooids; condyles acute, directed (proximo-) medially, lyrula varying in shape from rounded narrow denticle to quadrangular, generally relatively short and narrow. Ovicells hyperstomial, ooecium formed by distal zooid, globular, with slightly flattened roof, ectooecium smooth with numerous rimmed, usually circular pseudopores, proximal area concave and laterally abutting peristomial flaps; 4–5 spine bases present in fertile zooids near ovicell opening. Avicularium adventitious, single, suboral, small, proximally directed, frontal area semi-elliptical with parallel lateral margins and relatively straight proximal margin where it abuts peristome; rostrum semielliptical with broad immersed cryptocystal shelf, palatal foramen semicircular, postmandibular opesia slit-like, crossbar complete without columella. Ancestrula not observed. SD, standard deviation; N, number of measurements. Remarks. As with Smittina, species of the diverse and globally occurring genus Smittoidea essentially occur from the inner to outer shelf. There are hardly any records from bathyal depths in temperate European waters. Smittoidea reticulata (J. MacGillivray, 1842) was reported from the Iberian shelf between 20 and 240 m (Reverter- Gil & Fernández-Pulpeiro 2001; Reverter-Gil et al. 2014), but there are several differences between it and the Galicia Bank specimens—in the former the orifice is wider than long, only two distal spines are present and the suboral avicularium has an acute rostrum. Smittoidea marmorea (Hincks, 1877), supposedly occurring from the British Isles in the north to Madeira in the south (Hayward & Ryland 1999, p. 268), differs in having a broader lyrula, a larger and more proximally positioned avicularium and no oral spines in adult zooids. Two other species [S. ophidiana (Waters, 1879) from the Mediterranean Sea, and the hitherto unrecognised S. oratavensis (Busk, 1884) from the Azores] have, among other distinctive features, much longer avicularia that touch the distal part of the proximally positioned ooecium. Smittoidea celestinoi n. sp. was recorded at seven of the Galicia Bank localities from 938 to 1414 m depth, encrusting rocks, corals and shells.Published as part of Souto, Javier, Berning, Björn & Ostrovsky, Andrew N., 2016, Systematics and diversity of deep-water Cheilostomata (Bryozoa) from Galicia Bank (NE Atlantic), pp. 401-459 in Zootaxa 4067 (4) on pages 439-441, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4067.4.1, http://zenodo.org/record/25794