Exploring the Biodiversity of Understudied Benthic Taxa at Mesophotic and Deeper Depths: Examples from the Order Zoantharia (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia)
fmars-06-00305 June 15, 2019 Time: 17:44 # 1 ORIGINAL RESEARCH published: 18 June 2019 doi: 10.3389/fmars.2019.00305 Exploring the Biodiversity of Understudied Benthic Taxa at Mesophotic and Deeper Depths: Examples From the Order Zoantharia (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) James Davis Reimer1,2*, Hiroki Kise1, Maria E. A. Santos1, Dhugal John Lindsay3,4, Richard L. Pyle5, Joshua M. Copus6, Brian W. Bowen6, Masanori Nonaka7, Takuo Higashiji7 and Yehuda Benayahu8 1 Molecular Invertebrate Systematics and Ecology Laboratory, Graduate School of Engineering and Science, University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara, Japan, 2 Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara, Japan, 3 Advanced Science-Technology Research (ASTER) Program, Institute for Extra-cutting-edge Science and Technology Avant-garde Research (X-star), Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Yokosuka, Japan, 4 Laboratory of Aquatic Ecology, School of Marine Bioscience, Kitasato University, Sagamihara, Japan, 5 Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu, HI, United States, 6 Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, Kaneohe, HI, United States, 7 Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium, Okinawa Churashima Foundation, Motobu, Japan, 8 Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel Edited by: Johannes F. Imhoff, Research on so-called “minor taxa” at mesophotic depths has lagged behind that of GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Germany more commonly researched groups such as fish or hard corals. Exemplar taxa include Reviewed by: species of the order Zoantharia, benthic colonial anemones that are cosmopolitan in Cristina Dorador, distribution but understudied in many ecoregion and ecosystems. In this study, we University of Antofagasta, Chile Atoosa Noori Koupaei, examine the results of rare mesophotic to deep sea surveys (one rebreather, one Islamic Azad University, Iran remotely operated submersible (ROV) C net survey, two ROV surveys) from Japan *Correspondence: and Israel.
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