Plexauridae
| Plexauridae | ||||||||||
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Swiftia sp. |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||
| Plexauridae | ||||||||||
| Gray , 1859 |
The Plexauridae are the most species-rich family of gorgonia-like octocorals .
features
The animal colonies form a flexible, horn-like axial skeleton, which has a wide inner medula made of gorgonine , divided into several chambers , and an outer, soft, bark-like cortex. The cortex has pockets that are filled with hard crystals of calcium carbonate or a fibrous material. The medulla is covered by the coenenchyme from which the eight-rayed polyps grow.
Systematics
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The family is likely paraphyletic . In a phylogenetic study of 103 genera of Octocorallia, including 17 of the Plexauridae, the genera of the subfamily Stenogorgiinae were found as widely scattered branches in a large Holaxonia - Alcyoniina - clade. In contrast, the subfamily Plexaurinae excluding the genus Plexaura monophyletic .
- Subfamily Plexaurinae, mostly Caribbean
- Alaskagorgia
- Anthoplex aura
- Eunicea Lamouroux, 1816
- Euplexaura Verrill, 1865
- Muricea Lamouroux, 1821
- Plexaura Lamouroux, 1812
- Plexaurella Valenciennes, 1855
- Psammogorgia Verrill, 1868
- Pseudoplexaura Wright & Studer, 1889
- Subfamily Stenogorgiinae, mainly Indo-Pacific
- Astrogorgia
- Echinogorgia
- Heterogorgia
- Lepidomuricea
- Menella
- Paramuricea Kölliker, 1865
- Paracis
- Paraplex aura
- Swiftia Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1864
- Villogorgia Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1860
literature
- CS McFadden, SC France, JA Sánchez, P. Alderslade: A molecular phylogenetic analysis of the Octocorallia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa) based on mitochondrial protein-coding sequences , doi : 10.1016 / j.ympev.2006.06.010
- Svein A. Fossa / Alf Jacob Nilsen: Coral reef aquarium , Volume 4, Schmettkamp Verlag, 1995, ISBN 3-928819-05-4
