Eleutherobia grayi Thomson & Dean 1931
Creators: name: Dautova, Tatyana N.
name: Savinkin, Oleg V.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2009
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Cnidaria
Anthozoa
Alcyonacea
Alcyoniidae
Eleutherobia
Eleutherobia grayi

description: Eleutherobia grayi (Thomson & Dean, 1931)
(Figs. 1 C, 5, 6, 7)
Nidalia grayi Thomson & Dean, 1931: 37, Pl. 2, Fig. 2.
Eleutherobia grayi Verseveldt & Bayer, 1988: 33 –34, Figs. 24, 25; Williams, 2001: 210–216, Figs. 1–10.
Material examined. MIMB 16539-40, 2 specimens, 8° 25 N, 106° 23.8′ E, 6 m, 1987, Con Dao Island, South China Sea, Vietnam, coll. A. N. Malyutin, SV Professor Bogorov.
Description. MIMB 16539 (Fig. 1 C, a) is 12 mm in height and 4 mm across halfway along the polyparium. The specimen has been cut longitudinally for sclerite examination. The polyparium is 10 mm long and densely occupied by polyps retracted into mound-like protuberances. The surface is 0.15–0.25 mm thick as are the walls of the protuberances. MIMB 16540 is somewhat larger (Fig. 1 C, b), with semi-expanded polyps.
The surface layer of the polyparium contains 6-, 7- and 8-radiate capstans along with rods. The smallest capstans (up to 0.056 mm long, Fig. 5 A) are few and have a distinct median waist. Longer and more slender ones, up to 0.096 mm long, have a smooth median waist (Fig. 5 C). The rods are rather smooth, up to 0.13 mm long, with short branchlets or warts (Fig. 5 D). Some of the rods, up to 0.12 mm, are somewhat flattened, often with expanded ends (Fig. 5 E). Crosses are rare (Fig. 5 B).
In the stalk surface there are robust 6-, 7-, and 8-radiate capstans with a distinct, smooth waist (Fig. 6 A). Slender and smooth 6- and 8-radiate forms with thin branchlets (Fig. 6 B) merge into rods with warts or short branches (Fig. 6 C). The capstans predominate while the rods are not numerous. Flattened rods with expanded ends are not present.
In the polyparium and stalk interior there are 6- and 7- radiate capstans up to 0.08 mm long (Fig. 7 A); among them the robust ones are very few. Slender smooth rods with two girdles of prominences (mostly up to 0.09 mm long, in some cases up to 0.12 mm long) are common (Fig. 7 B). They have short side rays, so they are similar to rather smooth rods, up to 0.13 mm long, with rare warts and smooth branchlets (Fig. 7 C). Some rods are flattened and look like planar bodies up to 0.14 mm long (Fig. 7 D). Rods and crosses are common.
Variability. No clear inter-colony variability in the sclerite forms and sizes was found.
Coloration. The alcohol-fixed specimens are orange due to their sclerites. Coenenchymal sclerites are light lemon-yellow; many of them are colorless. Anthocodiae are colorless.
Field notes. The colonies were found on hard substratum, on a light exposed location.
Remarks. The remarkable 3–4- radiate sclerites depicted and described by Verseveldt & Bayer (1988: 33, Figs. 24d, f) and Williams (2001: 212, Fig. 6 A, K) for E. grayi, could actually be end views of 6- 8-rayed capstans and should not be considered characteristic for this species. The rest of the characters of Nha Trang material fully agree with the original description of E. grayi by Thomson & Dean (1931: 37, Pl. II, Fig. 2), the redescription of the designated lectotype by Verseveldt & Bayer (1988: 33–34, Figs. 24, 25), and the wellillustrated material from Solomon Island population of E. grayi by Williams (2001). The most important coincidences are: the total lack of sclerites in the anthocodia; the colony and sclerite coloration; the predominance of nearly smooth branched rods in the colony interior; and the size range of the sclerites (0.037–0.13 mm, present study, vs. 0.03–0.18 mm, the redescription of the lectotype).
description: Published as part of Dautova, Tatyana N. & Savinkin, Oleg V., 2009, New data on soft corals (Cnidaria: Octocorallia: Alcyonacea) from Nha Trang Bay, South China Sea, pp. 1-27 in Zootaxa 2027 on pages 4-10, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.186181