Reteporella jullieni

Reteporella jullieni (Calvet, 1907)

(Figs 1–7)

Not Retepora arborea Risso, 1826: 345.

Retepora arborea Jullien, 1882: 517, pl. 16, figs 49, 50.

Retepora jullieni Calvet, 1907: 453.

Sertella jullieni: d’Hondt, 1974: 44.

Sertella arborea: Hayward, 1979: 67, fig. 5. Reteporella jullieni: Reverter-Gil & Fernandez-Pulpeiro, 2001: 104; Reverter-Gil et al., 2014: 31.

Not Reteporella jullieni Calvet, 1931: 105.

Material examined. Lectotype (designated here): MNHN-3730: St. Dr.1, 2018 m, 43.011° N 9.6239° W, Travailleur. Paralectotype (designated here): MNHN-2620: St. Dr. 42, 896 m, 44 °1.32′ N 7° 4.764′ W, Travailleur. Other material: MNHN-487: st. 10, 35° 25.98′ N 6° 48.78′ W, 717 m, Talisman; MNHN-6989: Sertella jullieni, Thalassa, 14.10.1971, X325, 44° 6.8′ N 4° 45.5′ W, 660–680 m; MNHN-6991: Sertella jullieni, Thalassa, 14.10.1971, X325, 44° 6.8′ N 4° 45.5′ W, 600–800 m; MNHN-7017: Sertella jullieni, Crisia aculeata, Thalassa, 17.10.1971, X355, 44° 6.9′ N 4° 44.2′ W, 515–605 m; MNHN-7029: Sertella jullieni, Thalassa, 18.10.1971, 44° 5.7′ N 4° 42.8′ W, 505–580 m; MNHN-7036: Sertella jullieni, det d’Hondt, n° d’étude THD_40; MNHN-7061: Sertella jullieni, Thalassa, 8.10.1970, W392, 44° 6.9′ N 4° 49.3′ W, 600–1130 m; MNHN-7162: Sertella jullieni, Thalassa, 8.10.1970, 44° 5′ N 4° 31′ W, 760–1000 m; MNHN-7385: Sertella jullieni, Thalassa, 16.10.1971, 44° 6.9′ N 4° 43.8′ W, 570–615 m; MNHN-7393: Sertella jullieni, Thalassa, 17.10.1971, X359, 44° 7.2′ N 4° 49.4′ W, 605– 630 m; MNHN-18347: Sertella arborea, Sertella aquitanica, Thalassa, 17.10.1971, X363, 44° 6′ N 4° 53.2′ W, 545–630 m; MNHN-18348: Sertella arborea, Sertella sparteli, Thalassa, 12.10.1971, X305, 44° 5′ N 5° 0.6′ W, 463 m; MNHN-18350: Sertella arborea, Sertella aquitanica, Sertella sparteli, Schizomavella neptuni, Thalassa, 17.10.1971, X362, 44° 6.5′ N 4° 50.9′ W, 525–600 m; MNHN-18364: Sertella arborea, Thalassa, 16.10.1971, X345, 44° 6.2′ N 4° 41′ W, 525– 550 m.

Description. Erect colony, not fenestrate, branching dichotomously; branches sub-cylindrical. Zooids disposed in two alternate series, with the orifices opening alternatively to the left and right of the branch, but all directed in the same plane, with a basal part lacking orifices. Zooids elongated, polygonal or rhomboidal, frontal wall tessellated with two or three, very small, round pores close to the margin of the zooids. Primary orifice longer than wide, the distal rim with short and thin widely spaced denticles. Orifice rounded by a thin peristome with a proximal shallow pseudosinus. From the lateral and distal portion of the peristome, four spines are formed, usually lacking in ovicellate zooids, although they can sometimes be present.

Avicularia triangular, immediately proximal to the peristome in frontal position, directed proximo-medially with the distal part raised over the plane of the frontal wall, distally hooked. Second adventitious avicularium present on the basal surface, proximo-medially directed with the same morphology as the frontal avicularium but not raised distally.

Ovicells non-cleithral, prominent, becoming subimmersed as a result of overgrowth by secondary calcification. Ooecium semispherical, completely calcified, sometimes with slightly flared rim. Ectooecium smooth, visible only partially because of the secondary calcification expanding from 2–3 neighbour zooids. The secondary calcification has the same 'honey-comb' relief as the frontal shield. The entrance to the brood chamber is oval-elongated. The ancestrula was not observed in the specimens studied.

Remarks. The material described by Jullien (1882) as R. arborea was collected from two localities off northwestern Spain at 2018 and 896 m depth, and later, Calvet (1907), when proposing the new name R. jullieni, included one specimen from Cape Spartel in the Gulf of Cádiz from 717 m depth. Here, a lectotype and a paralectotype are designated from the specimens described originally by Jullien (1882), considering that Calvet (1907), in spite of including “n. sp.” to R. jullieni, indicated that it is a new designation for the original species described by Jullien (1882) as R. arborea. Then, the specimens used by Jullien (1882) should be considered the type series.

French campaigns on board the Thalassa in 1970 and 1971 recorded new specimens from different localities north and west of the Iberian Peninsula between 410 and 980 m depth (Fig. 8) that were studied by d’Hondt (1974), who identified them as S. jullieni, and Hayward (1979), who identified them as S. arborea,. Hayward (1979) affirmed that they are the first record after the original description, overlooking the records of Calvet (1907) and d’Hondt (1974). All these specimens mentioned and examined here are considered conspecific. In view of these records (Jullien 1882; Calvet 1907; d’Hondt 1974; Hayward 1979; Reverter-Gil et al. 2014), this species is considered to be distributed along the Atlantic continental slope around the Iberian Peninsula, as well as at sites on the Cachucho Seamount in the Bay of Biscay (Fig. 8).

Recently, Souto et al. (2016) recorded Reteporella cf. arborea from the Galicia Bank. The correct identification of this specimen remains unclear, but it should be described as Reteporella cf. jullieni.