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Rathkea cf. octopunctata from New Zealand
Rathkea cf. octopunctata from New Zealand
Description Adult medusa in budding phase, drawn after life. Note that the population so far identified as  R. octopunctata occurring in New Zealand could represent a distinct species according to preliminary molecular genetic data [Schuchert P. 2019. The hydroid of the medusa Lizzia blondina Forbes, 1848. Marine Biodiversity 49: 1683-1693. source id. 340991 ].
It differs from animals from the NE Atlantic in their oral tentacles being much longer ande more deeply cleft and the ends. Moreover, the lateral nematocyst clusters are absent.

After: Schuchert P. 1996. The marine fauna of New Zealand: athecate hydroids and their medusae (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa). New Zealand Oceanographic Institute Memoir 106: 1-159.
see: source id. 27481

  Author Schuchert, Peter PNG file - 70.39 kB - 1 788 x 2 830 pixels added on 2025-02-0896 viewsBlackSea taxaScan of drawing Rathkea octopunctata (M. Sars, 1835)checked Schuchert, Peter 2025-02-08 Download full sizeDownload full size
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