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The Extant Scleractinian Corals of New Zealand
[Introduction]
Although the majority of the major oceanographic and marine biologic expeditions have visited New Zealand, there has been a general absence of reports on the corals collected by them. This absence is most probably a reflection of the relatively small scope of the fauna which makes unlikely the collection of a numerous or diversified fauna in a few efforts. It is unfortunate that these collections have not been centrally housed, for their present widely disseminated condition has made any attempt at a comprehensive treatment of the fauna rather difficult.
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Text-fig. 1.—Distribution map of New Zealand extant scleractinian corals, including those known from the Chatham Islands area (inset map).
Cook Strait, a species that to our knowledge has not been re-collected. Studer (1878) reported on the collections made by the Gazelle, adding the species Flabellum latum and Desmophyllum [=Flabellum] gracile. The following year, the well known Australian Jesuit naturalist, the Rev J. E. Tenison-Woods (1879a
1879b) described Cylicia huttoni and C. vacua from the Wellington region and Millepora undulosa from Stewart Island (the latter has been identified as the polyzoan Heteropora neozelandica Busk by Dr D. A. Brown in Squires, 1958, p. 8.) Tenison-Woods (1880) attempted a review of the fossil corals of New Zealand, making known the bare essentials of the extent of that fauna. Dennant (1906) described Kionotrochus suteri, a new genus and species, from off Great Barrier Island. J. Stanley Gardiner (1929) recorded perhaps the single richest dredge haul of corals from New Zealand waters from a single station made by the Terra Nova off Three Kings Islands, six species were recorded: Flabellum harmeri Gardiner, Dendrophyllia japonica Rehberg, Gardineria sp., Trochocyathus (Thecocyathus) sp., Desmophyllum cristagalli, and Caryophyllia profunda. Squires (1958) treated the Cretaceous and Tertiary corals of New Zealand, considerably enlarging the known fossil fauna and including discussions of the systematic relationships of several of the modern forms. Wells (1958, p. 263) in discussing the Antarctic fauna, mentioned the presence of a single young specimen of Stephanophyllia formosissima Moseley from New Zealand in the British Museum.Many "lists" of modern corals from New Zealand have appeared, the majority of the earlier ones marked by their high degree of inexactitude. Duncan (1870, p. 311) recorded without citation of source Trochocyathus mantelli, T. hexagonalis, Flabellum rubrum, Culicia rubeola, C. smithii, Polyphyllia pelvis, Coenopsammia coccinea, C. gaimardi and C. urvillei. The first two listed are fossil species not recorded from rocks younger than Miocene and the last four of these species are reef-forming corals common on the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. Tenison-Woods (1878) similarly erroneously quoted Porites gaimardii and Polyphyllia pelvis [sic] from New Zealand. Hutton (1904) listed nine species of Madreporaria, two of which, Caryophyllia maculata and C. lamellifera are from the Kermadec Islands, as well as Placotrochus pedicellatus, which is known only from north-eastern Australia. Studer (1906) recorded Flabellum rugulosum Tenison-Woods from the modern fauna. Ralph (1948) discussed the occurrence of several species in the modern fauna. The known extant species, including those from the Chatham Islands, recognised here as being part of the New Zealand faunal region, are described below according to the following scheme: