Echinoderes zacharyi sp. nov., a new kinorhynch in the E. coulli species group (Kinorhyncha: Cyclorhagida) from the Gulf of Mexico

Recent surveys in the Gulf of Mexico have considerably expanded the knowledge of Gulf kinorhynch ecology and has increased the known diversity of the phylum in the area. In this contribution, Echinoderes zacharyi sp. nov. is described from the northern and southern Gulf of Mexico's waters along the U.S. continental shelf and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. This species belongs to a subgroup within the genus Echinoderes, known as the Echinoderes coulli-group and has a distinctive morphology which includes the animal's ability to retract segments 10 and 11 into segment 9. Additionally, this new species lacks a middorsal spine on segment 4, and has midlateral and lateroventral tubes on segment 5, as well as midlateral and lateral accessory tubes on segment 8. A description of E. zacharyi sp. nov. is provided along with the distribution of the species reported from the Alabama and Mexican coastlines.