Some nemerteans (Nemertea) from Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Three species of marine nemerteans described and illustrated from Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, include one new genus and two new species: these are the monostiliferous hoplonemerteans Thallasionemertes leucocephala gen. et sp. nov. and Correanemertes polyophthalma sp. nov. A new colour variety of the heteronemertean Micrura callima is also reported, this species previously only being known from Rottnest Island, Western Australia. A key for the field identification of the marine nemerteans recorded from coastal Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef is provided.     

Hemiuridae (Digenea) from marine fishes of the Great Barrier Reef,Queensland, Australia

The following species are described, figured and/or recorded from the Great Barrier Reef at Heron Island or Lizard Island, Queensland, with comparative material reported from other areas of the ocean around Australia or New Guinea: Dinurus longisinus (new synonym: D. hippuri) from Seriola lalandi, Heron Island and Coryphaena hippurus, Papua New Guinea; Ectenurus trachuri from Caranx sexfasciatus, Diploprion bifasciatus, Pterocaesio marri, Seriola lalandi and Atherinomorus capricorniensis, Heron Island; Erilepturus hamati (with 25 new synonyms) from Lutjanus carponotatus, Lizard Island, Platycephalus bassensis, Coff's Harbour, NSW, P. fuscus, Coff's Harbour, NSW and Moreton Bay, Queensland, P. endrachtensis, Sillago analis, S. maculata, S. ciliata, Pseudorhombus arsius and Polydactylus sp. from Moreton Bay, Queensland and Lates calcarifer, Darwin, Northern Territory; Tubulovesicula angusticauda from Echeneis naucrates and Lethrinus miniatus, Heron Island and Anguilla reinhardtii, Moreton Bay and Bribie Island, Queensland; Elytrophalloides humerus from Trachinotus botla and T. coppingeri, Heron Island; Lecithochirium kawakawa from Euthynnus affinis Heron Island and Lizard Island: Lecithochirium cirrhiti (new synonyms: L. sammarae, L. nohu) from Sargocentron rubrum, Heron Island; Lecithochirium caesionis from Pterocaesio marri, heron Island; Plerurus digitatus (new synonyms: P. cynoglossi, P. atulis, P. scomberomori) from Plectropomus leopardus, Heron Island, Lutjanus erythropterus, Variola louti, Scomberomorus semifasciatus, Grammatorcynus bicarinatus and Carangoides embureyi, C. gymnostethoides, Lizard Island, Scomberomorus commerson, Heron Island, Lizard Island, New Britain, Papua New Guinea, Point Lookout, Queensland and Moreton Bay, Queensland, Euthynnus affinis Heron Island, Lizard Island and New Britain, Papua New Guinea, Sphyraena barracuda, Heron Island and Lizard Island, Scomberomorus munroi, S. queenslandicus and Saurida undosquamis, Moreton Bay, Queensland and Chirocentrus dorab, Bundaberg, Queensland. The Lecithochirium species-group Cirrhiti is considered indistiguishable from the species-group Lotellae.     

Six new species of palaeonemerteans (Nemertea) from Hong Kong

One new genus and six new species of palaeonemerteans are described and illustrated from Hong Kong and the New Territories; these are Hubrechtella sinimarinus sp. nov. and Parahubrechtia jillae gen. et sp. nov. in the Hubrechtidae, and Callinera bergendali sp. nov., Carinina sinensis sp. nov., Tubulanus hylbomi sp. nov. and Tubulanus longivasculus sp. nov. in the Tubulanidae. These bring the known number of pa-laeonemertean species from Hong Kong to 11; a key to these species, based primarily upon features distinguishable in the living animals, is provided.     

Multivalvulid myxozoans from eastern Australia: three new species of Kudoa from scombrid and labrid fishes of the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia

Three new species of Kudoa, each having 6 polar capsules, are described from the somatic muscle of fishes collected on the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia. Kudoa grammatorcyni n. sp. was observed in the shark mackerel Grammatorcynus bicarinatus. Spores are stellate in apical view, width (all measurements in microm) 8.62 (8.03-8.95); thickness 8.14 (7.63-8.68); suture width 7.7 (7.24-8.16); length 6.54 (6.32-6.71); polar capsule length 3.68 (3.55-3.82); polar capsule width 1.72 (1.65-1.84). Kudoa scomberomori n. sp. is described from the Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus commerson. Spores are stellate in apical view, width 7.56 (6.84-8.16); thickness 6.79 (6.18-7.63); suture width 5.92 (5.26-6.32); length 5.43 (5.00-6.18); polar capsule length 3.24 (3.03-3.55); polar capsule width 1.37 (1.25-1.51). Kudoa thalassomi n. sp. is described from the moon wrasse Thalassoma lunare. Spores are stellate in apical view, width 10.66 (9.47-11.84); thickness 9.37 (8.55-10.79); suture width 7.98 (6.84-8.82); length 6.65 (6.18-7.11); polar capsule length 4.92 (4.74-5.00); polar capsule width 2.12 (2.04-2.24). All 3 species differ in spore morphology from the 1 previously described myxozoan with 6 polar capsules, Hexacapsula neothunni from yellowfin tuna Neothunnus macropterus, which has since been reassigned to Kudoa.     

A new parasitic copepod (Copepoda; Cyclopoida; Chondracanthidae) from two pomacentrid fishes caught on the Great Barrier Reef,Queensland, Australia

Systematic Parasitology - A new species of the copepod genus Pseudacanthocanthopsis Yamaguti & Yamasu, 1959 (family Chondracanthidae) is described based on material of both sexes collected...     

Two Lepotrema Ozaki, 1932 species (Digenea: Lepocreadiidae) from marine fishes from the southern Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia

The genus Lepotrema Ozaki, 1932 is revived and redefined. Its main diagnostic characters are the dorsal excretory pore, the muscular development of the distal metraterm and the trilobate ovary. It is considered to contain five species, to which a key is given. Lepotrema clavatum Ozaki, 1932 is briefly redescribed from Amanses scopas and Sufflamen chrysopterus, and L. canthescheni n. sp. is described from Cantheschenia grandisquamis, based on material from the southern Great Barrier Reef. L. canthescheni is distinguished by its vitelline and uterine distribution. The other three recognised species are: L. adlardi (Bray, Cribb & Barker, 1993) n. comb., L. incisum (Hanson, 1955) n. comb. and L. xanthichthydis (Yamaguti, 1970) n. comb., all three having originally been placed in Lepocreadium.     

Phylogenetic and evolutionary perspectives of the Indo-Pacific grouper Plectvopomus species on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Molecular tools were used to investigate relationships between species of Plectropomus , an Indo-Pacific group with a potentially recent evolutionary history on the Great Barrier Reef. Plectropomus laevis appeared to be basal, with evidence of hybridization between P. leopardus/maculatus and P. maculatusllaevis .     

A new species of Halacarsantia Wolff, 1989 (Crustacea, Isopoda, Asellota, Santiidae) from Wistari Reef, southern Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Halacarsantia acutasp. n. is described from Wistari Reef, Capricorn Group, southern Great Barrier Reef, the first record of the genus from Australia. The new species differs from its congeners in having antenna flagellum composed of 8 articles; epipod apically acute, without setae, broad maxilliped endite and pereopod 1 basis with a short projection. A key to species of the genus is provided.     

Four new monorchiids from marine teleost fishes of Moreton Bay and the Great Barrier Reef,Australia, including the proposal of a new genus

We report four new species of monorchiids infecting teleost fishes from Australian waters. Two new species of Paralasiotocus Wee, Cutmore, Pérez-del-Olmo & Cribb, 2020, Pa. abstrusus n. sp. and Pa. tectus n. sp., are described from haemulids of the Great Barrier Reef. The two species are morphologically cryptic and occur in sympatry but differ significantly in cox1 mtDNA and ITS2 rDNA sequence data. Paralasiotocus tectus n. sp. is found only in Plectorhinchus albovittatus (Rüppell) whereas Pa. abstrusus n. sp. infects Pl. albovittatus, Plectorhinchus flavomaculatus (Cuvier) and Plectorhinchus lineatus (Linnaeus). The two species differ from all known species of Paralasiotocus in the possession of a clear gap in the spines of the terminal organ. A new species is described from a mullid, Parupeneus spilurus (Bleeker), from off Heron Island and Moreton Bay. The new species is morphologically broadly consistent with the concept of Paralasiotocus in the possession of an unspined genital atrium, bipartite terminal organ, and lobed ovary. However, it possesses a highly lobed cirrus and is phylogenetically widely separated from the two species of Paralasiotocus characterized here, and thus we propose Lobucirruatus infloresco n. g., n. sp. Proctotrema prominens n. sp., is described from Pl. albovittatus. It is differentiated from all other species of Proctotrema in the combination of a prominent metraterm, slightly fusiform body, slightly funnel-shaped oral sucker, elongate cirrus-sac, unlobed ovary, and caeca that terminate in the post-testicular region.     

Lepocreadiidae (Digenea) from the batfish of the genus Platax Cuvier (Teleostei: Ephippidae) from the southern Great Barrier Reef,Queensland, Australia

The following species are described from Platax spp.: Neomultitestis aspidogastriformis n. sp., from P. teira, off Heron Island, Queensland, which can be distinguished from its congeners by the transversely elongate ventral sucker divided into three loculi and probably by testis number; Multitestis magnacetabulum Mamaev, 1970, from P. teira, off Heron Island, Queensland; Diploproctodaeum rutellum (Mamaev, 1970), from P. teira, off Heron Island, Queensland; Diploproctodaeum tsubameuo n. sp., from P. batavianus, from the Swain Reefs, off Queensland, which differs from its congeners in its overlapping, posteriorly attenuated testes and 38-55 ovarian lobes; and Diplocreadium sp., from P. batavianus, from the Swain Reefs, off Queensland.     

A new species,new host records and life cycle data for lepocreadiids (Digenea) of pomacentrid fishes from the Great Barrier Reef,Australia

A new species of lepocreadiid, Opechonoides opisthoporus n. sp., is described infecting 12 pomacentrid fish species from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, with Abudefduf whitleyi Allen & Robertson as the type-host. This taxon differs from the only other known member of the genus, Opechonoides gure Yamaguti, 1940, in the sucker width ratio, cirrus-sac length, position of the testes, position of the pore of Laurer’s canal, and relative post-testicular distance. The new species exhibits stenoxenic host-specificity, infecting pomacentrids from seven genera: Abudefduf Forsskål, Amphiprion Bloch & Schneider, Neoglyphidodon Allen, Neopomacentrus Allen, Plectroglyphidodon Fowler & Ball, Pomacentrus Lacépède and Stegastes Jenyns. Phylogenetic analyses of 28S rDNA sequence data demonstrate that O. opisthoporus n. sp. forms a strongly supported clade with Prodistomum orientale (Layman, 1930) Bray & Gibson, 1990. The life cycle of this new species is partly elucidated on the basis of ITS2 rDNA sequence data; intermediate hosts are shown to be three species of Ctenophora. New host records and molecular data are reported for Lepocreadium oyabitcha Machida, 1984 and Lepotrema amblyglyphidodonis Bray, Cutmore & Cribb, 2018, and new molecular data are provided for Lepotrema acanthochromidis Bray, Cutmore & Cribb, 2018 and Lepotrema adlardi (Bray, Cribb & Barker, 1993) Bray & Cribb, 1996. Novel cox1 mtDNA sequence data showed intraspecific geographical structuring between Heron Island and Lizard Island for L. acanthochromidis but not for L. adlardi or O. opisthoporus n. sp.

     

Reproduction and distribution of two species of Goniastrea (Scleractinia) from the Great Barrier Reef province

The reproductive biology of Goniastrea aspera at Magnetic Island was compared with that of a very similar sympatric species, G. favulus as reported by Kojis and Quinn at Heron Island. The development of gametes was similar in both species, but there was no evidence for an adolescent protandrous period of development in G. aspera such as that recorded for G. favulus at Heron Island. Other reproductive differences between the two species were found in egg size and the mode of spawning. The eggs of G. aspera are smaller and more numerous than those of G. favulus. Goniastrea aspera expelled buoyant packets of eggs and sperm, while G. favulus had sticky sinking eggs which were released separately from the sperm. The spatial pattern of the two species was examined on the reef flat at Magnetic Island to determine whether the observed differences in spawning behaviour and egg buoyancy might have an effect on egg retention and the distribution of adult colonies. The results of this comparison failed to detect any difference in the degree of aggregation of the two species. This is not the result which would be expected if sticky sinking eggs helped retain developing larvae in the vicinity of the adult. These results, together with evidence from a wide range of coelenterates and observations on the larvae of G. aspera point to post spawning larval behaviour as the most likely factor in determining where these species will settle.     

A new species of the Fluviopupa group (Caenogastropoda: Tateidae) from north-east Queensland,Australia

Fluviopupa kessneri n. sp. is described from the Mulgrave River and one of its major tributaries, the Little Mulgrave River, in north-east Queensland. It is the first record of the Fluviopupa group from a continental area, other members of the genus being known only from Fiji, New Guinea and a few other Pacific Islands, including New Caledonia.     

Zoanthids (Anthozoa, Hexacorallia) from the Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait, Australia: systematics, evolution and a key to species

 Zoanthid taxonomy is currently in a state of chaos, with many described species very few of which can be reliably identified. As part of a genetically based, objective reappraisal of the number of northern Australian species, a total of 355 zoanthid specimens were collected from 19 localities in the Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait during 1992–1994. Specimens, initially assigned to one of ten morphological or ecological forms, were subjected to allozyme electrophoretic analysis. Analysis of genetic data revealed only seven discrete (i.e., non-interbreeding) groups in the family Zoanthidae. These groups, which are delimited by fixed gene differences, are considered species under a biological species concept. Some species show considerable morphological variation and have broad environmental tolerances. We provide the first key to Great Barrier Reef zoanthid species based on our results and observations. Species can be differentiated in the field on the basis of gross colony morphology, sand encrusting habit, polyp form and habitat. Genetic data are also used to generate a phylogenetic hypothesis of relationships among the Zoanthidae, which is compared to previous morphologically based systems. Division of the group on the basis of mesenterial arrangement appears justified, but nematocyst data appear less valuable in phylogenetic studies of the group than has been suggested previously. Accepted: 29 January 1996     

A modern soft-bottom, shallow-water crinoid fauna (Echinodermata) from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia

A recent preliminary survey revealed that 12 species of unstalked crinoids occur on a gentle sandy slope (12–18 m depth) at Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia; five of which are also found on coral reefs. The other seven appear to constitute a unique assemblage restricted to unconsolidated substrates, where most cling to algae or hide beneath rubble or sponges. Members of this assemblage exhibit all of the basic feeding postures found among reef-dwelling species. However, Comatula rotalaria, which lacks anchoring cirri and bears uniquely differentiated short and long arms, exhibits a posture different from other living crinoids. Quantitative transects reveal apparent depth-related differences in species composition: C. rotalaria dominated the 12 transects in 12–13 m (84% of 82 specimens), while Comatella nigra, Comatula cf. purpurea, Amphimetra cf. tessellata and Zygometra microdiscus accounted for 96% of 54 specimens observed along 12 transects in 16–17 m.     

Monorchiid trematodes of the painted sweetlips,Diagramma labiosum (Perciformes: Haemulidae), from the southern Great Barrier Reef,including a new genus and three new species

Five monorchiid species are reported from Diagramma labiosum Macleay (Perciformes: Haemulidae) collected from Heron Island on the southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR): two described species, Helicometroides longicollis Yamaguti, 1934 and Diplomonorchis kureh Machida, 2005 and three new species, including one new genus, Asymmetrostoma heronensis n. g., n. sp., Lasiotocus arrhichostoma n. sp. and Proctotrema addisoni n. sp. Helicometroides longicollis and D. kureh were previously reported from the closely related species Diagramma pictum (Thunberg) from Japan. Two further monorchiid species known from D. pictum, Genolopa plectorhynchi (Yamaguti, 1934) and Paraproctotrema fusiforme Yamaguti, 1934, appear to be absent from the southern Great Barrier Reef. Previous reports of two other monorchiids from D. labiosum from the GBR, Paramonorcheides pseudocaranxi Dove & Cribb, 1998 and Helicometroides vitellosus (Durio & Manter, 1968), are shown to have been made in error. The high richness of monorchiids and other trematode families in D. labiosum is consistent with that seen in other haemulids elsewhere.     

Picoplankton dynamics in Davies Reef lagoon, the Great Barrier Reef, Australia

The diel variations in abundance and frequency of dividing cells(FDC) of coccoid cyanobacteria in a coral reef lagoon were investigatedin June, September and December 1989, and April 1990. Cyanobacteriaand picoplanktonic eukaryotes (<3 µm) were sampledmonthly from January to December 1990. The average abundancesof cyanobacteria and eukaryotes ranged between 1.17–10.0610⁴cells ml^–1 and 0.16–2.4110⁴ cells ml^–1, respectively,with abundances of both being higher in summer (November-April)than in winter (May-October). The ratio of cyanobacteria toeukaryotes fluctuated from 1.93 to 8.67, independent of theseasonal variation in their abundances. The instantaneous growthrate of cyanobacteria, which was estimated from the daytimeabundance increment, ranged between 0.430 and 3.144 day^–1The estimated daily specific growth rate of cyanobacteria bythe FDC method ranged between 0.231 and 0.966 day^–1. InApril, despite the high specific growth rate and low flushingconditions. cyanobacterial abundance showed a cyclic diel pattern,suggesting a strong grazing impact on their population.