G. Hendler, J.E. Miller, D.L. Pawson, P.M. Kier, editors. Sea stars, sea urchins, and allies. Echinoderms of Florida and the Caribbean, xi, 390p. Washington, USA: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1995. Price £31.25.

1996 ◽  
Vol 76 (3) ◽  
pp. 835-835 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Smithsonian Institution ◽  
Sea Stars ◽  
The Caribbean

An annotated and illustrated checklist of the porcelain crabs of Panama (Decapoda: Anomura)

Zootaxa ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5045 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-154
Author(s):  
LUCIANE AUGUSTO DE AZEVEDO FERREIRA ◽  
ARTHUR ANKER
Keyword(s):  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Hermit Crabs ◽  
Coralline Algae ◽  
Tropical Eastern Pacific ◽  
Sea Stars ◽  
Coral Rubble ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
First Time ◽  
Porcelain Crabs

The present study is the first exhaustive checklist of porcelain crabs (Porcellanidae) distributed on the Pacific and Atlantic (Caribbean) coasts of Panama, based on literature records and material collected between 2006 and 2019. The Panamanian porcellanid fauna is currently composed of a total of 76 species, with 26 species reported from the Caribbean coast, 45 species reported from the Pacific coast, and five species reported from both sides of the Central American Isthmus (Isthmus of Panama). In other words, the Caribbean and Pacific coasts of Panama each harbour, respectively, 31 and 50 species of porcellanid crabs. However, this total includes two problematic porcellanid records from Panama, viz. Clastotoechus nodosus (Streets, 1872) and Petrolisthes brachycarpus Sivertsen, 1933, as well as a putatively undecribed taxon reported as Pachycheles sp. The following four species are recorded for the first time from Panama, viz. Euceramus panatelus Glassell, 1938, Pachycheles riisei (Stimpson, 1859) [also being new for Mexico], Petrolisthes dissimulatus Gore, 1983 and P. tonsorius Haig, 1960. In addition, Minyocerus kirki Glassell, 1938 is newly recorded from Colombia, extending its previously known distributional range significantly southwards. Most species are illustrated in colour, several for the first time, based on material from Panama or other localities. At least 20 further species (16 in the Atlantic, 5 in the Pacific, and 1 in both oceans) are suspected to occur in Panamanian waters, based on their records from the neighbouring Costa Rica and/or Colombia, or their wide distribution in the Caribbean Sea or the tropical eastern Pacific. The presence of several cryptic or pseudocryptic species (at least some of them presumably undescribed), especially in the taxonomically challenging Petrolisthes galathinus (Bosc, 1802) species complex, or the eventual species splitting within some taxa currently seen as transisthmian, will likely further increase the total number of species present in Panama. The porcellanid fauna of Panama is also ecologically remarkably diversified. Most Panamanian porcelain crabs are free-living under rocks, in crevices of rocks, dead coral heads, coralline algae, coral rubble etc., or on mud, among mangrove roots. Euceramus panatelus lives in possibly self-dug burrows in soft mud or muddy sand, whereas its congener E. transversilineatus (Lockington, 1878) may occasionally be found in association with holothuroids. At least 15 further porcellanid species occurring in Panama live in permanent or facultative associations with a variety of other marine organisms, including sponges, cnidarians (octocorals), echinoderms (sea urchins, sea stars, sea cucumbers), polychaetes (parchment worms) and other decapod crustaceans (hermit crabs), making them one of the most attractive groups for studies of symbiosis-related behaviour and evolution.  

Skeletal elements of crinoid echinoderms: High-resolution structural and microanalytical results

1983 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
pp. 194-195
Author(s):  
D. F. Blake ◽  
L. F. Allard ◽  
D. R. Peacor
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Sea Stars ◽  
High Resolution Tem ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Insight Into

Echinodermata is a phylum of marine invertebrates which has been extant since Cambrian time (c.a. 500 m.y. before the present). Modern examples of echinoderms include sea urchins, sea stars, and sea lilies (crinoids). The endoskeletons of echinoderms are composed of plates or ossicles (Fig. 1) which are with few exceptions, porous, single crystals of high-magnesian calcite. Despite their single crystal nature, fracture surfaces do not exhibit the near-perfect {10.4} cleavage characteristic of inorganic calcite. This paradoxical mix of biogenic and inorganic features has prompted much recent work on echinoderm skeletal crystallography. Furthermore, fossil echinoderm hard parts comprise a volumetrically significant portion of some marine limestones sequences. The ultrastructural and microchemical characterization of modern skeletal material should lend insight into: 1). The nature of the biogenic processes involved, for example, the relationship of Mg heterogeneity to morphological and structural features in modern echinoderm material, and 2). The nature of the diagenetic changes undergone by their ancient, fossilized counterparts. In this study, high resolution TEM (HRTEM), high voltage TEM (HVTEM), and STEM microanalysis are used to characterize tha ultrastructural and microchemical composition of skeletal elements of the modern crinoid Neocrinus blakei.

scholarly journals Taxonomy of family Benthopectinidae (Echinodermata: Asteroidea) in the Mexican waters of the Gulf of Mexico

2021 ◽  
Vol 69 (Suppl.1) ◽  
pp. 118-131
Author(s):  
Magdalena De los Palos-Peña ◽  
Francisco-Alonso Solís-Marín ◽  
Alfredo Laguarda-Figueras
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Smithsonian Institution ◽  
Valid Species ◽  
National Museum ◽  
Sea Stars ◽  
Dichotomous Key ◽  
The Family ◽  
The World

Introduction: The family Benthopectinidae is composed of deep-sea sea stars distributed in eight genera and approximately 70 valid species. So far, only five species of this family have been reported for the Mexican waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Objective: To provide an updated local taxonomy of this family. Methods: A total of 566 specimens deposited in the Echinoderm National Collection, Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, and the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, collected from 1952 to 2015, were taxonomically examined. Results: We present descriptions, photographs, and an illustrated dichotomous key for Benthopecten simplex simplex, Cheiraster (Barbadosaster) echinulatus, Cheiraster (Cheiraster) planus, Cheiraster (Christopheraster) blakei, and Cheiraster (Christopheraster) mirabilis in the region. Conclusions: The five studied species represent 6 % of the world biodiversity of the family and can now be identified with the illustrated key.

Echinodermata

1989 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinz A. Lowenstam ◽  
Stephen Weiner
Keyword(s):  
Amorphous Materials ◽  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Magnesium Carbonate ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Sea Stars ◽  
Mineralized Tissues ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Almost All ◽  
And Function

The Echinodermata are certainly one of the most unusual and interesting phyla from the biomineralization point of view. They all live in the marine environment. The five major taxonomic classes (Asteroidea or sea stars, Ophiuroidea or brittle stars, Echinoidea or sea urchins, Crinoidea or sea lilies, and Holothuroidea or sea cucumbers) have quite different anatomical shapes and are characterized by fivefold symmetry. Each group forms mineralized hard parts. In the Echinoidea the skeletal elements are fused together to form a rigid test, whereas in the Asteroidea, Ophiuroidea and Crinoidea the skeletal elements or ossicles are articulated with one another. In the Holothuroidea the skeleton is usually reduced to microscopic ossicles or spicules, and, in some cases, mineralized granules as well. The hard parts of echinoderms vary enormously in shape and function and include not only the diverse skeletal elements, but also spines and teeth. Remarkably, with very few exceptions, the mineralized hard parts are formed from the same mineral, magnesium-bearing calcite [usually 5–15% as magnesium carbonate (Chave 1952, 1954; Raup 1966)], which has some unique and interesting properties. The ultrastructure of many of the macroscopic skeletal hard parts has a characteristic spongy or fenestrate structure (called the stereom) and is riddled with labyrinthine cavities (collectively called the stereom space). In echinoid spines the stereom spaces are secondarily filled in to form areas of solid mineral. The surfaces of the mineral phase are very smooth, even when examined a high magnification in the SEM (Towe 1967; Millonig 1970). Furthermore, the broken surfaces show no characteristic ultrastructural motif, which is observed in almost all other mineralized tissues in which the individual crystals are enveloped by layers of organic material. The fracture surfaces of echinoderm calcite actually have a conchoidal cleavage (Towe 1967), which is characteristic of glassy or amorphous materials. It is, therefore, most surprising that when individual skeletal plates, spines, spicules, ossicles, and even whole teeth are examined in polarized light or by X-ray diffraction, they behave as if they are single crystals! (Towe 1967; Donnay and Pawon 1969).

Echinoderm conferences and symposia: a concise history and bibliography

Zoosymposia ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
ALEXANDER ZIEGLER ◽  
ANDREAS KROH
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Conference Proceedings ◽  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Sea Stars ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Present Information ◽  
The Future ◽  
Detailed List

For fifty years, the community of echinoderm researchers has held meetings, symposia, conferences, and workshops deal­ing with their primary objects of research, that is sea stars, sea urchins, and allies. Over the years, a bewildering amount of literature has been published in the course of these gatherings, making it sometimes difficult for the echinoderm novice to see the woods for the trees. In order to facilitate future historic and bibliographic research, we provide a concise summary of echinoderm meetings from 1963 to 2012, together with a detailed list of publications related to these events. This list includes conference proceedings and abstracts compilations complete with ISBN or ISSN numbers. The historical back­ground of several echinoderm conferences is described, and we present information about lesser-known meetings, held for example in the Soviet Union, France, or Japan. In addition, an overview of the evolution of echinoderm conference logos is provided. Finally, we briefly discuss the future of echinoderm conferences and their proceedings.

Uroptychus nitidus (A. Milne-Edwards, 1880) and related species (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Chirostylidae) from the western Atlantic

Zootaxa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 4221 (3) ◽  
pp. 251
Author(s):  
KEIJI BABA ◽  
MARY K. WICKSTEN
Keyword(s):  
Related Species ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Smithsonian Institution ◽  
Western Atlantic ◽  
Straits Of Florida ◽  
Number Of Species ◽  
Comparative Zoology ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Squat Lobsters

Eight species of squat lobsters of the genus Uroptychus are reported from the western Atlantic based on the collections of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard, the Smithsonian Institution and Texas A&M University. Uroptychus nitidus (A. Milne-Edwards, 1880) is reviewed and redescribed, with a syntype taken at Blake Station 200 off Martinique designated as the lectotype. Uroptychus alphonsei n. sp. is named for U. nitidus variety C Chace, 1942, U. fenneri n. sp. for U. nitidus variety A Chace, 1942, and U. janiceae n. sp. for U. nitidus variety B Chace, 1942; U. lindae n. sp. is described on the basis of specimens collected by the Alaminos in the Caribbean Sea off northern Columbia; U. rafai n. sp. is described based on a sole specimen taken from the Straits of Florida; U. reedae n. sp. is described from among the syntypes of U. nitidus; and U. uncifer (A. Milne-Edwards, 1880) is redescribed to elaborate on its specific status, with the designation of lectotype from Blake Station 299 off the coast of Barbados. The number of species of Uroptychus from the western Atlantic now stands at 21. A key to these species is provided. 

scholarly journals Understanding trophic relationships among Caribbean sea urchins

2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 837 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruber Rodriguez Barreras ◽  
Elvira Cuevas ◽  
Nancy Cabanillas-Terán ◽  
Benjamin Branoff
Keyword(s):  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Trophic Position ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Food Resources ◽  
Trophic Relationships ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
Generalist Herbivore ◽  
Isotopic Characterization ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Niche Competition

The species <em>Echinometra lucunter</em>,<em> Echinometra viridis</em>,<em> Lytechinus variegatus</em>, <em>Tripneustes ventricosus,</em> and <em>Diadema antillarum</em> are the most common sea urchins of littoral habitats in the Caribbean. <em>T. ventricosus</em> and <em>L. variegatus</em> are associated with seagrass beds, while the other three species usually inhabit hardground substrates. Food preferences of these species are well documented and they are commonly accepted as being primarily herbivorous-omnivorous; nevertheless, few of them have previously been characterized isotopically. We used this approach for assessing the isotopic characterization of five echinoids. We established the trophic position of two groups of co-occurring species and quantified the contribution of food resources in the diet of <em>Echinometra lucunter</em>, considered the most common sea urchin in the Caribbean region. The species <em>T. ventricosus</em> and <em>D. antillarum</em> showed the highest values of δ<sup>15</sup>N. Sea urchins exhibited similar values of δ<sup>13</sup>C varying from -11.6 ± 0.63 to -10.4 ± 0.99%. The echinoid <em>E. lucunter</em> displayed the lowest values of carbon, from -15.40 ± 0.76%. Significant differences among species were found for δ<sup>15</sup>N and δ<sup>13</sup>C. Seaweed communities exhibited no differences among sites for overall δ<sup>15</sup>N (F= 1.300, df= 3, p= 0.301), but we found spatial differences for δ<sup>13</sup>C (F= 7.410, df= 3, p= 0.001). The ellipse-based metrics of niche width analysis found that the hardground biotope species (<em>D. antillarum</em>, <em>E. lucunter</em>, and <em>E. viridis</em>) did not overlap each other. Similar results were obtained for the co-occurring species of the seagrass biotope; however, the distance between these species was closer than that of the hardground biotope species. The Bayesian mixing models run for <em>E. lucunter</em> at all four localities found differences in food resources contribution. The algae <em>D. menstrualis</em>, <em>C. crassa</em> and <em>B. triquetrum</em> dominated in CGD; whereas <em>C. nitens</em>, <em>Gracilaria</em> spp., and <em>D. caribaea</em> represented the main contributor algae to the diet of <em>E. lucunter</em> at LQY. In Culebra Island, no dominance of any particular algae was detected in TMD, where six of the eight species exhibited a similar contribution. Similarities in δ<sup>15</sup>N between <em>D. antillarum</em> and <em>T. ventricosus</em> may hint towards a similar trophic level for these species, although <em>T. ventricosus</em> is widely accepted as an omnivore, while <em>D. antillarum </em>is considered a generalist herbivore. The lack of overlap among species in the two biotopes seems to indicate a resource partitioning strategy to avoid niche competition among co-occurring species.

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