Clavulariidae Hickson 1894
Creators: name: Devictor, Susan T.
name: Morton, Steve L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2010
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Cnidaria
Anthozoa
Alcyonacea
Clavulariidae

description: Key to species of Clavulariidae in the South Atlantic Bight  1. Colonies encrusting hard substrate or dead colonies of octocorals. Calyces conical (Figure 17a), connected by ribbon (Figure 17b) or sheet-like stolons. Sclerites consisting of coarse plates arranged in mosaic-like manner (Figure 17a,b).......................................................................................................................................................................... 2  
- Colonies with monopodial branching, sometimes bushy (Figure 18a). Calyces cylindrical. Sclerites as forked or warty rods, granules and spindles (Figure 18b–e), but not plates................................................................................ 3  
 2. Calyces connected by slender (1 mm) ribbon-like stolons................................................................................................................................................................................. Scleranthelia rugosa (Pourtalès 1867) … growth form rugosa   
 - Calyces connected by sheet-like membranous stolons........................................................................................................................................................................... Scleranthelia rugosa (Pourtalès 1867) … growth form musiva Studer   
 3. Sclerites of coenenchyme slender, branching, thorny, not blunt (Figure 18b). Color in life white or pale brown; white when preserved in alcohol................................................................ Carijoa riisei (Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1860)   
- Sclerites of coenenchyme coarse, rounded, blunt spindles, often one side coarser than other side (Figure 18c–e). Color red, pink, yellow, orange or light brown in life and when preserved in alcohol................................................ 4  
 4. Sclerites dense in distal and proximal portions of tentacle rachis, oriented longitudinally at base, and in two horizontal rows in distal half of rachis; Color bright red.................................................. Telesto sanguinea Deichmann, 1936   
- Sclerites present only in proximal half or base of tentacles, or if in distal portion, sparingly so; few horizontally oriented rods; Color light red, yellow, orange or brown.................................................................................................. 5  
 5. Base of tentacle with dense cluster of sclerites (>10) extending up to half the length of the rachis; coenenchymal sclerites mostly blunt, branching granules, no elongate spindles. Color yellow, orange, pink or red................................................................................................................................................................. Telesto fruticulosa Dana, 1846   
 - Base of tentacle with sparse cluster of sclerites (<10) not extending into rachis; coenenchymal sclerites blunt granules and elongate spindles. Color yellowish-brown.......................................................... Telesto nelleae Bayer, 1961
description: Published as part of Devictor, Susan T. & Morton, Steve L., 2010, Identification guide to the shallow water (0 - 200 m) octocorals of the South Atlantic Bight 2599, pp. 1-62 in Zootaxa 2599 (1) on pages 18-19, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.2599.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/10095192