Echinoderms from the subantarctic islands of New Zealand: Asteroidea, Ophiuroidea, and Echinoidea, Cape Expedition, 1941-1945

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Description

This report is based on the collections of specimens and data in the Auckland and Campbell Islands in the years 1941-45. Early in 1941, coast-watching stations were established at Port Ross, Carnley Harbour, and Perseverance Harbour, and the personnel of from three to five men at each were relieved once a year. Standing instructions issued by the Navy Office included a recommendation that the men should, in addition to service routine, record general observations on natural phenomena. This report is regarded as of the Cape Expedition which was the war-time code name for parties in the field between 1941 and 1945.

The Subantarctic Islands of New Zealand comprise five groups, all standing upon the New Zealand submarine plateau. They share an echinoderm fauna which presents many resemblances to that of the New Zealand mainland, though possessing distinctive features of its own. Of the five groups on the plateau, two - namely the Auckland Islands and Campbell Island - were visited by Th. Mortensen in 1914, and as a result of his studies, together with some previous work, notably that of Farquhar (1898) and Benham (1909), the faunal relationships above noted were fairly clear. This data set collected by the Cape Expedition consolidated and confirmed all of Mortensens conclusions and supplemented them with fresh data from the Snare and the Antipodes groups.

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Bibliographic Citations

1. Fell, H.B. (1953). Echinoderms from the subantarctic islands of New Zealand: Asteroidea, Ophiuroidea, and Echinoidea. Records of the Dominion Museum 2: 73-111. 2 plates. -