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New records of deep-sea sea spiders (Chelicerata: Pycnogonida) in the southeastern Pacific

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Abstract

New records of the very large sea spiders Colossendeis colossea, Colossendeis macerrima, and Colossendeis minor are presented based on specimens collected as bycatch from the deep water fisheries of the Patagonian toothfish during January–March 2015 off the port of Caldera (27° S), Región de Atacama, northern Chile. The specimens examined represent the deepest bathymetric record for C. colossea in the country, the northernmost record of C. macerrima for Chile, extending its previous record by about 2170 km, and the first record of C. minor in Chilean waters, which is also the southernmost record of C. minor for the Pacific Ocean. The presence of these species in northern Chile may give hints of a continuous distribution of this genus along the Chilean coasts, representing part of a hidden biodiversity of invertebrates thriving in deep waters in the southeastern Pacific.

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Acknowledgments

I thank David A. Staples (Museum Victoria, Melbourne, Australia) for his guidance in identifying the specimens examined here, for his help with the literature on the matter, and for correcting an earlier version of the manuscript. Thanks also go to Andrea Weis (ZSMA) for her help in identifying the specimen of C. macerrima and to Roland Melzer (ZSMA) for his help with the deposition number at the ZSMA. Access to essential old literature was through the Biodiversity Heritage Library (http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/). My gratitude also goes to the crew of the FV Juan Antonio and FV Rocio II (of the Port of Caldera, Región de Atacama, northern Chile) for their efforts in preserving the material studied in this manuscript and to the two anonymous reviewers whose suggestions helped to improve this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidad de Atacama, Copayapu 485, Copiapó, Chile

    Juan Francisco Araya

  2. Programa de Doctorado en Sistemática y Biodiversidad, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile

    Juan Francisco Araya

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  1. Juan Francisco Araya
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Correspondence to Juan Francisco Araya.

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Communicated by A. Brandt

This article is registered in ZooBank under urn:lsid:zoobank.org :pub:443B4F42-FB13-42A6-B92B-1B0F835698A9

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Araya, J.F. New records of deep-sea sea spiders (Chelicerata: Pycnogonida) in the southeastern Pacific. Mar Biodiv 46, 725–729 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-015-0416-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-015-0416-7

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