Halecium dubium Fraser, 1941b

Halecium dubium Fraser, 1941b: 83, pl. 16, fig. 10a, pl. 17, fig. 10b.

Holotype. USNM 22922: USA, Massachusetts, south of Georges Bank, R / V Albatross Sta. 2572, 40°29’N, 66°04’W, 3235 m, 0 2 September 1885, large beam trawl, one colony, ca. 3 cm high, in fair condition, with gonophores, labelled “ type ”; ethanol.

Type locality. USA, Massachusetts: in abyssal waters seaward of George’s Bank, 40°29’N, 66°04’W, 1769 fm (3235 m) (Fraser 1941b).

Current status. Valid.

Remarks. Fraser (1941b) designated material at the NMNH (USNM 22922) as the “ type ” of Halecium dubium. Although currently listed in the online database of that museum as a syntype, the specimen count is correctly indicated as “1”. Moreover, Fraser’s (1941b: 83, 84) original description of the species reveals that it was based on a single male colony, stating “…the specimen from which this species is described…” The single NMNH specimen is therefore the holotype (ICZN Art. 73.1.2).

Fraser (1941b) considered Halecium dubium to be much like H. telescopicum Allman, 1888 from Australia (off Port Jackson). He distinguished it as new because it lacked repeated reduplication of the hydrophores. Also considered unusual by him was the existence of a small semicircular notch at the distal end of the male gonotheca. Halecium dubium is recognized as a valid species in WoRMS.