Xu Yu, Zhan Zifeng, Xu Kuidong
Laboratory of Marine Organism Taxonomy and Phylogeny, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Qingdao China.
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences Qingdao China.
Zookeys. 2020 Nov 9;989:1-37. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.989.53104. eCollection 2020.
Explorations of seamounts in the Western Pacific Ocean and South China Sea resulted in collecting 18 specimens of golden gorgonians. Based on the morphology and the genetic analysis of mtMutS, they are described as one new species, , and four known species, including Xu, Zhan & Xu, 2020, (Wright & Studer, 1889), Kükenthal, 1919, and Pante & France, 2010. belongs to the "group A, Spiculosae" with rods or spindles distributed in the polyp-body wall and tentacles, and differs from all of its congeners except by the 1/3L branching sequence and amoeba-shaped sclerites at the basal polyp body. The mtMutS sequence of has six deletion mutations compared to those of its congeners, supporting the establishment of the new species. Although no genetic variability was observed between the closely related species and Pante & Watling, 2012, the former is different from the latter by the apparently irregular sclerites in the polyp body wall. The two specimens of match well with the original description except for relatively larger polyps, while the specimens have slightly smaller polyps than the holotype. The juvenile of has an obvious morphological difference with the adults in the colony shape and branches, but they can be unified by the same polyps and sclerites as well as mitochondrial MutS sequences. Thus, the generic diagnosis of is slightly extended to include the morphology of juveniles. The morphology of Pante & France, 2010, as a new record for the South China Sea, matches well with that of the original description. In the phylogenetic trees, the species are separated into two clades, and while and formed a sister clade.
对西太平洋和南海海山的探索收集到了18个金色柳珊瑚标本。基于形态学和线粒体MutS基因分析，它们被描述为一个新物种，即 ，以及四个已知物种，包括2020年的徐、湛和徐所描述的 ，（赖特和施图德，1889年）的 ，1919年库肯塔尔所描述的 ，以及2010年潘特和弗朗斯所描述的 。 属于“A组，有刺类”，棒状或纺锤状骨针分布在水螅体壁和触手，除 外，与所有同属物种的区别在于其1/3L分支序列以及基部水螅体处的变形虫状骨针。与同属物种相比， 的线粒体MutS序列有六个缺失突变，支持新物种的建立。尽管在亲缘关系密切的物种 和2012年潘特和沃特林所描述的 之间未观察到遗传变异，但前者与后者的区别在于水螅体壁中明显不规则的骨针。 的两个标本除了水螅体相对较大外，与原始描述相符，而 的标本水螅体比正模略小。 的幼体在群体形状和分支上与成体有明显形态差异，但它们可以通过相同的水螅体、骨针以及线粒体MutS序列统一起来。因此， 的属诊断略有扩展，以包括幼体的形态。2010年潘特和弗朗斯所描述的 作为南海新记录，与原始描述相符。在系统发育树中， 物种分为两个分支， 和 形成一个姐妹分支。
