Family BEROIDAE Eschscholtz, 1825

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Introduction

The name Beroidae was first used by Eschscholtz (1825: 741) as Ordnung Acalephae Beroidae, to group the families Beroidae cavae (what is recognised today with the genera Beroe and Neis, or the Beroidae in the modern sense), Beroidae lobatae (the lobates), and Beroidae tentaculatae (the tentaculates). This was therefore more applicable to the Ctenophora as a whole, than to the Beroidae in the stricter sense that we today recognise. Eschscholtz founded the Ctenophora as we now know it today.

Three described species have been recorded from Australian waters. One unnamed species (pelagic and planktonic) has been reported from NSW, NT, SA, TAS, VIC and WA by Dakin & Colefax (1933: NSW), Hamond (1971: Moreton Bay), Zeidler & Gowlett-Holmes (1998: Port Philip Bay) and Gershwin (unpublished notes: Darwin Harbour and numerous localities around Australia).

Diagnosis

As for the class and order.

General References

Dakin, W.J. & Colefax, A. 1933. The marine plankton of the coastal waters of New South Wales. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 58: 186-222, pl. 7

Eschscholtz, J.F. von 1825. Bericht über die zoologische Ausbeute der Reise von Kronstadt bis St. Peter - und Paul. Isis von Oken, Jena 16(sect. 1, pt 6): 733–738

Hamond, R. 1971. Some medusae from near Brisbane. Search (Sydney) 2(1): 27

Zeidler, W. & Gowlett-Holmes, K.L. 1998. Confirmation of the association of the hyperiidean amphipod genus Hyperia (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea: Hyperiidae) with ctenophores. Records of the South Australian Museum (Adelaide) 31(1): 117-118

History of changes