"Austroflustra gerlachi gen. nov., sp. nov.
(Figs. 1-3)
DESCRIPTION: Colony erect, flexible, bilaminar, branch¬ing dichotomously in the same plane. Branches long, ribbon-like, reaching a maximum width of about 10 mm before branching. Chitinous rhizoids present in the basal part of the colony. Zooids about three times longer than wide, tapering proximally. Cryptocyst with a concave border, occupying nearly one third of the frontal surface. Spines lacking. Three to seven (usually five) small adventitious avicularia on the cryptocyst of every zooid. Rostrum blunt, directed proximally or proximolaterally. Ovicells rounded, immersed. Zooids distal to ovicells differ from the others in having only two avicularia and being wide proximally. Ovicelled zooids arranged so as to form distinct transverse series. Marginal kenozooids with thickened walls and some avicularia on the cryptocyst. Lateral walls with six pore plates.
TYPES: The holotype (No. 31138) and the paratypes (No. 31139) are deposited in the collections of the Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales (MACN).
MATERIAL: One complete colony of 10 cm in height (the holotype) and many fragments from station 152.
ETYMOLOGY: Named after Prof. Dr. SEBASTIAN GERLACH, Scientific Director during the second Antarctic Leg of R.V. "Meteor"." (Lopez-Gappa, 1982:36)
MEASUREMENTS (mm):
n
max.
min.
mean
stand.
dev.
Zooecial length
20
2.19
1.60
1.72
0.14
Zooecial width
20
0.66
0.51
0.59
0.04
Ovicell length
10
0.54
0.46
0.48
0.02
Ovicell width
10
0.47
0.41
0.45
0.02
