Capillasterinae

Nemaster grandis, copyright Edgardo Ochoa.

Belongs within: Comatulidia.

The Capillasterinae are a group of feather stars with a low centrodorsal and usually numerous cirri, with dorsal spines or tubercles on the distal cirri (Wienberg Rasmussen 1978).

Characters (from Wienberg Rasmussen 1978): Centrodorsal rather low discoidal. Cirri rather numerous, in one to three irregular circles. Distal cirrals with dorsal spine or tubercle. Centrodorsal reduced and cirrus-free only in a single species of Capillaster. Articular face of radials with interarticular ligament fossae much wider than high. Border between interarticular and ventral fossae horrizontal or sloping toward interradial edge. Ventral muscular fossae more or less extended outward at interradial margin. Arms divided at primibrachs 2 and commonly further divided at secundibrachs 2, seldom at secundibrachs 1,3, or 4 and tertibrachs 2, 3, or 4. Synarthrial articulation at primibrachs 1 to 2, secundibrachs 1 to 2 and often tertibrachs 1 to 2. Mouth generally excentric to marginal, occasionally central.

Capillasterinae
    |--Comatilia Clark 1909 WR78
    |    `--*C. iridometriformis Clark 1909 WR78
    |--Comanthoides Clark 1931 WR78
    |    `--*C. spanochistum (Clark 1916) [=Comanthus spanochistum] WR78
    |--Comatonia Clark 1916 WR78
    |    `--*C. cristata (Hartlaub 1912) [=Actinometra cristata] WR78
    |--Comissia Clark 1909 WR78
    |    `--*C. luetkeni Clark 1909 WR78
    |--Ctenantedon Meyer 1972 WR78
    |    `--*C. kinziei Meyer 1972 WR78
    |--Leptonemaster Clark 1909 WR78
    |    `--*L. venutus Clark 1909 WR78
    |--Microcomatula Clark 1931 WR78
    |    `--*M. mortenseni Clark 1931 WR78
    |--Palaeocomatella Clark 1912 WR78
    |    `--*P. difficilis (Carpenter 1888) [=Actinometra difficilis] WR78
    |--Capillaster Clark 1909 WR78
    |    |--*C. sentosus (Carpenter 1888) [=Actinometra sentosa] WR78
    |    `--C. multiradiata (Linnaeus 1758) MG-H11
    |--Neocomatella Clark 1909 [=Neomatella (l. c.)] WR78
    |    |--*N. alata (Pourtalès 1878) [=Antedon alata] WR78
    |    `--N. pulchella WR78 [=Actinometra pulchella C50]
    |--Comatella Clark 1908 WR78
    |    |--*C. nigra (Carpenter 1888) [=Actinometra nigra] WR78
    |    |--C. maculata WR78
    |    `--C. stelligera (Carpenter 1888) MG-H11
    `--Nemaster Clark 1909 WR78
         |--*N. grandis Clark 1909 WR78
         |--N. discoidea WR78
         `--N. rubiginosa W79

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[C50] Clark, A. H. 1950. A monograph of the existing crinoids. Vol. 1. The comatulids. Part 4c. Superfamily Tropiometrida (the families Thalassometridae and Charitometridae). Bulletin of the United States National Museum 82 vol. 1 (4c): 1–383.

[MG-H11] McEnnulty, F. R., K. L. Gowlett-Holmes, A. Williams, F. Althaus, J. Fromont, G. C. B. Poore, T. D. O’Hara, L. Marsh, P. Kott, S. Slack-Smith, P. Alderslade & M. V. Kitahara. 2011. The deepwater megabenthic invertebrates on the western continental margin of Australia (100–1100 m depths): composition, distribution and novelty. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 80: 1–191.

[W79] Warner, G. F. 1979. Aggregation in echinoderms. In: Larwood, G., & B. R. Rosen (eds) Biology and Systematics of Colonial Organisms pp. 375–396. Academic Press: London.

[WR78] Wienberg Rasmussen, H. 1978. Articulata. In: Moore, R. C., & C. Teichert (eds) Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology pt T. Echinodermata 2. Crinoidea vol. 3 pp. T813–T927. The Geological Society of America, Inc.: Boulder (Colorado), and The University of Kansas: Lawrence (Kansas).