Ascidians from Rocas Atoll, northeast Brazil

Abstract

Rocas Atoll is the only one of its kind in the South Atlantic-and the first Brazilian marine biological reserve. This is the first report about the ascidians from Rocas. A total of 12 species were found, 5 of them not hitherto described: Ascidia viridina sp. nov., Didemnum rochai sp. nov., Leptoclinides crocotulus sp. nov., Polysyncraton maurizeliae sp. nov., and Trididemnum rocasensis sp. nov. One Caribbean species, Didemnum halimedae, was also discovered in the region for the first time. Further, this is the first record of Didemnum digestum in the Atlantic. The results indicate a high degree of endemism in the ascidian fauna from Rocas Atoll, where didemnids are presently the most important members.

Polysyncraton (Ascidiacea, Didemnidae): a re-examination of some specimens and descriptions of three new species

“…Eight species of Polysyncraton have been reported from the Atlantic Ocean (Rocha et al 2012;Paiva et al 2015) and none of them look like the one described herein. Polysyncraton snelliusi sp.…”

“…Only two species of Polysyncraton have been reported from Brazil, P. amethysteum with a distribution along the whole coastline and P. maurizelae Paiva et al, 2015 from Rocas Atoll (Paiva et al 2015). Polysyncraton cabofriense sp.…”

Individual niche trajectories in nesting green turtles on Rocas Atoll, Brazil: an isotopic tool to assess diet shifts over time

“…Indeed, this area is a foraging site for juvenile green and hawksbill turtles (Bellini et al 2013). The Rocas Atoll biodiversity includes 143 taxa of macroalgae (Villaça et al, 2010) and a range of zoobenthos and fish species (Moraes et al 2003;Paiva et al 2007;Batista et al 2012;Paiva et al 2015). The higher δ 15 N values for oceanic habitats (more negative δ 13 C values) noted in two nesting individuals (Figure 1) could be related to the animal matter ingested around the nesting site, that is an oceanic habitat; or even during the migration to-and-from the nesting site.…”

Checklist of ascidians (Chordata, Tunicata) from the southern Gulf of Mexico

“…Panama ( Rocha et al 2005 ), French Guiana ( Monniot 2016 ), Brazil ( Dias et al 2012 ; Paiva et al 2015 ), Senegal ( Monniot and Monniot 1994 ), South Africa (Monniot et al 2001), Red Sea ( Shenkar 2012 ), Hong Kong ( Kott and Goodbody 1982 ), Philippines ( Monniot and Monniot 2001 ), Papua New Guinea ( Monniot and Monniot 2001 ), Japan ( Tokioka 1954 ), Australia ( Kott 2001 ), New Caledonia ( Monniot 1995 ), French Polynesia ( Monniot and Monniot 1987a ), and Fiji ( Kott 1981 ).…”