Kott, P. (2009). Taxonomic revision of Ascidiacea (Tunicata) from the upper continental slope off north-western Australia. Journal of Natural History. 43: 1947-1986.
Taxonomic revision of Ascidiacea (Tunicata) from the upper continental slope off north-western Australia
Journal of Natural History
43: 1947-1986
Publication
Available for editors
A collection of ascidians from 100–1000 m deep off the north-western coast of
Australia has yielded 19 species, including one new, two possibly endemic to the
north-western coast of Australia, four well-known Indo-west Pacific tropical species and 12 species known from the deeper waters of the western Pacific, of which
11 had not previously been recorded from off the western Australian coast or
from other parts of the Indian Ocean. A third of these 12 species displays adaptations for a reduction in filter-feeding capacity, as do other known species from
deeper slope and abyssal habitats. Nevertheless a connection with fauna of deep
ocean basins of the Indian Ocean is not apparent at this stage. The full range of
characters associated with species, genera and families are discussed, and those
contributing to the identification of immature or mutilated specimens, as well as
those relevant to an assessment of phylogenetic relationships, are emphasized
