Widest geographic distribution of a shallow and mesophotic antipatharian coral (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia): Antipathes grandis VERRILL, 1928 – confirmed by morphometric and molecular analyses

Abstract

We provide the first record of the shallow and mesophotic (< 150 m depth) antipatharian coral Antipathes grandis VERRILL, 1928 from the Indian Ocean. First described from Hawaii, A. grandis was recently found on a mesophotic coral reef in SW Madagascar. Its identity was confirmed by means of morphological and molecular analyses (cytochrome c oxidase subunit I). These findings not only expand our knowledge of the potential geographic range of antipatharian corals, but also challenge the belief that only deep-sea (> 200 m depth) benthic taxa have such wide geographic distributions.