SOME ALCYONIID OCTOCORALS FROM KII COAST, MIDDLE JAPAN

Abstract

Our previous knowledge of the Japanese Alcyonaria has been derived from widely scattered references, mostly dealing with one or a few species, and from the reports of several zoological expeditions which have visited the oriental region. Among these reports are very scarce especially those recording or describing the species of the Alcyoniidae, which are mostly confined to deep-water forms, e. g. Nidalia, Anthomastus and Bathyalcyon. For the past several years I have engaged in collecting the shallow-water octocorals around the Kii coast, where the marine fauna as a whole is characterized, apart from the endemic element, by a number of tropical elements. Although the collection is by no means extensive, it nevertheless provides us with some new items of interest concerning the Japanese Alcyonarian fauna. The present paper comprises nine species of the Alcyoniidae hitherto obtained around the Kii coast. Of these, one (Microspicularia arborea) is new to science and four (M. digitulata, Sinularia gardineri, Sarcophyton elegans and Lobophytum batarum) are recorded for the first time from Japan.