ECHINODERMS OF THE MONTEBELLO ISLANDS

WA Museum Records and Supplements | Updated 9 years ago

Summary - The echinoderm fauna of the Montebello Islands includes species characteristic of the coastal and shelf fauna together with widespread Indo-West Pacific coral reef species. The diversity of habitats and hydrological conditions provided by the geographical complexity of the island group also contribute to the faunal richness of the islands. A total of 170 species is recorded from the present study and the Western Australian Museum collections. This total is comparable to that recorded from the Houtman Abrolhos, where the fauna is a mixture of tropical and temperate species and close to that of Ashmore Reef, which also has elements of "mainland" and "reef" species besides being closer to the central Indo-west Pacific area of greatest species richness. Ashrnore Reef, with 178 species recorded, has the most speciose echinoderm fauna of any area of Western Australia. Several species found at the Montebellos are believed to be new records for Australia and a few may represent undescribed species.