Amphisbetia distans ( Lamouroux, 1816 )

Gil, Marta & Ramil, Fran, 2025, Hydroids (Cnidaria, Hydrozoa) from Guinea Bissau, Zootaxa 5577 (1), pp. 1-89 : 48-49

Amphisbetia distans ( Lamouroux, 1816)

( Fig. 8C )

Sertularia distans Lamouroux, 1816: 180 , Pl. V fig. 1A–B.— Picard, 1951a: 112.—Millard, 1975: 306–307, fig. 99E–H.— Ramil & Vervoort, 1992a: 227–228, fig. 63C.— Hirohito, 1995: 207–209, fig. 68A–I.— Peña Cantero & García Carrascosa, 2002: 136–137, fig. 26A–C.

Tridentata distans : Calder, 1991: 105–107, fig. 55.— Cornelius, 1995b: 108–111, fig. 27.

Amphisbetia distans : Calder et al., 2019: 42–44 , fig. 6a, b.

Material examined. BISSAU-0810, stn BS191, 10º18'25"– 10º19'20"N, 16º08'47"– 16º08'47"W, 24–25 m, 3-XI-2008: 48 colonies (two with gonothecae), of which four growing on bryozoans, four on Idiellana pristis , three on Eudendrium capillare , three on Diphasia digitalis , one on Eudendrium ramosum and one on a bivalve.

BISSAU-0810, stn BS192, 10º19'30"– 10º20'15"N, 16º10'27"– 16º10'59"W, 24 m, 3-XI-2008: seven colonies 12–42 mm high, without gonothecae, of which two growing on Idiellana pristis , one on Bimeria vestita and one on a bivalve.

BISSAU-0810, stn BS195, 10º22'44"– 10º23'22"N, 16º15'37"– 16º16'18"W, 29 m, 3-XI-2008: four colonies 14–22 mm high, without gonothecae, of which two growing on bryozoans.

Remarks. Amphisbetia distans is a well-known species in the eastern Atlantic ( Gil & Ramil 2023b). No further discussion is necessary.

Our finding represents the first record of this species for Guinea-Bissau.

Biology. This species has been found growing on different substrates, including a wide range of invertebrates ( Peña Cantero & García Carrascosa 2002, as Sertularia distans ; Gil & Ramil 2023b). In the northern hemisphere, colonies with gonothecae have been found from January to October ( Teissier 1965; Ansín Agís 1992; Peña Cantero and García Carrascosa 2002, all as S. distans ), while in the southern hemisphere gonothecae were observed in April ( Calder et al. 2019).

In our material some colonies were growing on hydroids, bryozoans and bivalves. Fertile material was found in November

Distribution. Amphisbetia distans is considered as a circumtropical species ( Ramil & Vervoort 1992a, as S. distans ). In West Africa, it has been recorded from Morocco ( Ramil & Vervoort 1992a, as S. distans ) to South Africa (Millard 1975, as S. distans ). Its bathymetric distribution ranges from 0 (Millard 1975 as S. distans ; Cornelius 1995b; as Tridentata distans ) to 826 m ( Ramil & Vervoort 1992a, as S. distans ).

Our material was collected at depths between 24–29 m.

Genus Diphasia L. Agassiz, 1862

Figures

FIGURE 8. A. Sertularella polyzonias (Linnaeus, 1758) (stn BS157), portion of colony. B. Sertularella undulitheca Vervoort, 1959 (stn BS192), portion of hydrocladium. C. Amphisbetia distans (Lamouroux, 1816) (stn BS192), portion of stem. D–F. Idiellana pristis (Lamouroux, 1816) (stn BS191); portion of hydrocladium (D); gonothecae (E–F). Scales: a–f, 0.5 mm.