On a Collection of Echinodermata from Karnataka Coast, India

The Kamataka State of India has a 270 km long coast line bordering Arabian Sea. The habitats are mainly sandy with scattered rocks and rocky islands. The echinoderm fauna of the coast is poorly known. There are several scattered reports of echinoderms from Karnataka (see Sastry, 2007). However, the report of PatH (1953) includes the marine fauna exclusively of Kamataka and only Temnopleurus sp. of echinoderms from Karwar coast of Karnataka. Recently Sastry (2007) gave an account of Echinodermata reported from the Indian coast including 27 species mainly from the offshore locations along the Kamataka coast collected years back chiefly by the R. I. M. S. Investigator. The collections made during the recent survey of the coast by Dr. M. K. Dev Roy of ZSI along with JGP and SM of us included seven species. The asteroid Asterina burtoni is from the intertidal rocks at St. Mary Island and all the other six species are from the trash collections of the offshore fishing trawlers left on the beach. Of the seven species, the asteroid Luidia hardwicki and the two echinoids were reported earlier from the Kamataka. The other four species are additions to the fauna of the State. Further, the finding extends the known distribution of Comatella stelligera westward into Arabian Sea. Brief description of the material is given under remarks. The distribution along the Indian coast is from Sastry (2007) and elsewhere is mainly from Clark and Rowe (1971). A list of all the echinoderm species known from Karnataka is appended. SYSTEMATIC ACCOUNT