Sertularella robusta Allman, 1874

Gil, Marta & Ramil, Fran, 2025, Hydroids (Cnidaria, Hydrozoa) from Guinea Bissau, Zootaxa 5577 (1), pp. 1-89 : 48

Sertularella robusta Allman, 1874

Sertularella gayi var. robusta Allman, 1874: 474 , pl. LXVI figs 3, 3A.— Billard, 1906b: 185, fig. 9B.

non Sertularella robusta Coughtrey, 1876: 27 , pl. 3 fig. 6 (= Sertularella quasiplana Trebilcock, 1928 ).

Sertularella gayi robusta : Ramil & Vervoort, 1992a: 223–225, figs 60B, 62A–C.— Medel & Vervoort, 1998: 45–46, fig. 12.— Calder & Vervoort, 1998: 39–41, fig. 19A–B.

Sertularella porcupine Gil et al., 2020: 430–431 , fig. 3E.

Material examined. BISSAU-0810, stn BS156, 10º22'50"– 10º23'40"N, 17º19'08"– 17º19'08"W, 849–940 m, 27- XI-2008: one colony 182 mm high without gonothecae, substrate unknown.

Remarks. Moura et al. (2011) have demonstrated that S. gayi robusta is genetically distinct from S. gayi ( Lamouroux, 1821) . The replacement name Sertularella porcupine Gil, Ramil & Ansín Agís, 2020 proposed by Gil et al. (2020) for this form to avoid a supposed synonymy with S. robusta Coughtrey, 1876 proved out of scope ( Galea 2023). Therefore, as pointed out by Calder & Faucci (2021), the correct name of this morphotype should be Sertularella robusta , prioritizing Allman’s (1874) authority rather than that of Coughtrey (1876).

Our material is consistent with that described by Gil et al. (2020, as S. porcupine ) from the Mauritanian Coral Mounds. With this record we extend the southern distribution of S. robusta in the eastern Atlantic.

Biology. This species has been found growing on different invertebrates and even some artificial substrates ( Gil et al. 2020). In the northern hemisphere, gonothecae have been reported in May, June and November ( Medel & Vervoort 1998).

Distribution. Sertularella robusta is and East Atlantic species ( Gil et al. 2020). In West Africa, it has been recorded from Morocco, Mauritania and the Cape Verde ( Ramil & Vervoort 1992a; Medel & Vervoort 1998; Gil & Ramil 2017a, all as S. gayi robusta ). Its bathymetric distribution ranges from 120 to 1003 m ( Calder & Vervoort 1998; Gil & Ramil 2017a, both as S. gayi robusta ).

Our material was collected at depths between 849–940 m.