Promachocrinus fragarius

Last updated

Promachocrinus fragarius
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Echinodermata
Class: Crinoidea
Order: Comatulida
Family: Antedonidae
Genus: Promachocrinus
Species:
P. fragarius
Binomial name
Promachocrinus fragarius
McLaughlin, Wilson & Rouse, 2023

Promachocrinus fragarius, commonly known as the Antarctic strawberry feather star, is a species of stemless, free-swimming crinoid. It was one of several new species of Promachocrinus to be described in 2023. [1] The discovery of the species gained significant media attention. [2] [3] [4]

Contents

Description

The team which discovered the species said it was dubbed the 'Antarctic strawberry feather star' due to "the resemblance of its body to a strawberry". Its colour can range from "purple" to "dark-reddish", and it was described as having "ten rays" and "twenty arms". [5]

Distribution and habitat

P. fragarius is found in the waters of Antarctica at depths between 65 m (213 ft) and 1,170 m (3,840 ft). [5] The type locality is at the South Sandwich Islands. [6]

The dispersal of Promachocrinus larvae was heavily influenced by Antarctic currents. [7]

References

  1. ↑ McLaughlin, Emily L.; Wilson, Nerida G.; Rouse, Greg W. (2023-07-14). "Resolving the taxonomy of the Antarctic feather star species complex Promachocrinus 'kerguelensis' (Echinodermata: Crinoidea)" . Invertebrate Systematics. 37 (7): 498–527. doi:10.1071/IS22057. ISSN   1447-2600.
  2. ↑ Solis-Moreira, Jocelyn (2023-08-17). "Behold a 20-armed, strawberry-shaped Antarctic sea creature". Popular Science. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  3. ↑ "Scientists Discover 'Strawberry-Like' Invertebrate With 20 Arms". Gizmodo. 2023-08-11. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  4. ↑ Das, Amrita (2023-08-11). ""Getting Aliens movie vibes": Antarctic Strawberry Feather Star leaves netizens in a frenzy". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  5. 1 2 Ziafati, Noushin (12 August 2023). "Scientists discover new, 'otherworldly' species with 20 arms in the Antarctic Ocean". CTV News . Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  6. ↑ "Promachocrinus fragarius McLaughlin, Wilson & Rouse, 2023". ZooBank . Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  7. ↑ McLaughlin, Emily L.; Wilson, Nerida G.; Rouse, Greg W. (2023-07-14). "Resolving the taxonomy of the Antarctic feather star species complex Promachocrinus 'kerguelensis' (Echinodermata: Crinoidea)" . Invertebrate Systematics. 37 (7): 498–527. doi:10.1071/IS22057. ISSN   1447-2600.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.