CHRYSOGORGIIDAE (OCTOCORALLIA) COLLECTED DURING THE MACROFAUNA I Y II EXPEDITIONS TO THE COLOMBIAN CARIBBEAN

Abstract

Four samples of octocorals in the family Chrysogorgiidae are described (Chrysogorgia desbonni, C. elegans and C. thyrsiformis and Trichogorgia lyra), collected in the Colombian Caribbean during the explorations INVEMAR–Macrofauna I and II. The three Chrysogorgia species were found between depths of 160 and 516 m, while T. lyra was collected in shallow waters between depths of 20 and 150 m, both bathymetric ranges which had not been widely studied in the country before, making this a particularly interesting study. Furthermore, nearly 50 species of various octocorals have been identified based on studies of this type. Chrysogorgia thyrsiformis is recorded for the first time for Colombian Caribbean. In the other hand, geographic distribution and bathymetric ranges are indicated for all these species in the Caribbean and particularly Colombia.