Cyphastreakausti sp. n. (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Scleractinia), a new species of reef coral from the Red Sea

Zookeys. 2015 Apr 16:(496):1-13. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.496.9433. eCollection 2015.

Abstract

A new scleractinian coral species, Cyphastreakausti sp. n., is described from 13 specimens from the Red Sea. It is characterised by the presence of eight primary septa, unlike the other species of the genus, which have six, ten or 12 primary septa. The new species has morphological affinities with Cyphastreamicrophthalma, from which it can be distinguished by the lower number of septa (on average eight instead of ten), and smaller calices and corallites. This species was observed in the northern and central Red Sea and appears to be absent from the southern Red Sea.

Keywords: KAUST; Merulinidae; Saudi Arabia; biodiversity; coral reef; taxonomy.