The Bathyal Holothurians of the New Zealand Region
Relationships of the Bathyal Fauna
Relationships of the Bathyal Fauna
The bathyal holothurian fauna of the New Zealand region comprises an assemblage of genera and species which are in general widely distributed in the Pacific Ocean, or are cosmopolitan. Most of the genera are shared with the Indo-west-Pacific, and the similarity to the fauna of the Indo-west-Pacific region is also evident at the specific level. This is true also for the shelf echinoderm genera (Fell, 1953; Pawson, 1961 and in press).
The presence of northern Atlantic species in the New Zealand fauna is notable, but such forms as Benthogone rosea and Echinocucumis hispida are probably rather more widespread species than has formerly been supposed.