Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 10, 2026

Unraveling the Unseen Players in the Ocean - A Field Guide to Water Chemistry and Marine Microbiology
Published on: November 5, 2014
A new Muricea species (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Octocorallia) from the eastern tropical Pacific
Odalisca Breedy1, Hector M Guzman2
1Centro de Investigación en Estructuras Microscópicas, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Escuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica. P.O. Box 11501-2060, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, P.O. Box 0843-03092, Panama, Republic of Panama.
Abstract:
The genus Muricea is considered abundant and widely distributed along the eastern Pacific. Its occurrence in shallow waters has been recognised; however species from deeper than 30 m have been rarely recorded. During the 2005 R/V Urracá expedition along the north and central Pacific coast of Costa Rica several octocoral specimens were collected by bottom trawling from 30 to 150 m yielding new species and new records. Herein we describe a new species of Muricea from deeper than 30 m. The morphological characters of the species were analysed and illustrated by optic and scanning electron microscopy. Muricea subtilissp. n. can be distinguished from the other species in the genus by its thin spiny branches, non-imbricate calyces, white colony and sclerites, and the size and composition of sclerites. Comparative character tables are provided for the closest Muricea species-group. This new species increases the number in the genus to 26, and contributes to the knowledge on the diversity and distribution of mesophotic soft corals in the eastern Pacific.
More Related Videos
05:29Obtaining Hemocytes from the Hawaiian Bobtail Squid Euprymna scolopes and Observing their Adherence to Symbiotic and Non-Symbiotic Bacteria
Published on: February 11, 2010
09:47A Standardized Procedure for Monitoring Harmful Algal Blooms in Chile by Metabarcoding Analysis
Published on: August 26, 2021
Related Concept Videos
Bacterial Phylum Tenericutes
Fungal Phylum Microsporidia
Diversity of Protists III
Diversity of Protists I
Diversity of Protists II
Bacterial Phylum Verrucomicrobiota