Rino Lubatti, Italien
Info
Ellisella dollfusi was initially named Scirpearia dollfusi Stiasny, 1938, after a discovery in the Suez Canal in 1938, and was later transferred to the genus Ellisella dollfusi.
The color of living colonies was described as “salmon-colored” in Stiasny's initial description, while Dr. Daphne Fautin recorded a pale ochre variant in the World List of Octocorallia.
Under optimal conditions, this gorgonian can reach a total height of up to 150 cm and was long considered endemic to the Red Sea until a study examined specimens of Ellisella dollfusi from the South China Sea (Xisha Islands / Paracel Islands) in 2014 and 2016.
Etymology:
The species name “dollfusi” honors the French zoologist and parasitologist Dr. Robert-Philippe F. Dollfus (1887–1976).
Synonym: Scirpearia dollfusi Stiasny, 1938 · unaccepted > superseded combination (original combination)
We would like to express our special thanks to Rino Lubatti (Italy) for the first photo of Ellisella dollfusi, who discovered and photographed the coral on a rock face in Elphinstone Reef, Egypt.
Rino has given us written permission to use his photo, thank you very much!
The color of living colonies was described as “salmon-colored” in Stiasny's initial description, while Dr. Daphne Fautin recorded a pale ochre variant in the World List of Octocorallia.
Under optimal conditions, this gorgonian can reach a total height of up to 150 cm and was long considered endemic to the Red Sea until a study examined specimens of Ellisella dollfusi from the South China Sea (Xisha Islands / Paracel Islands) in 2014 and 2016.
Etymology:
The species name “dollfusi” honors the French zoologist and parasitologist Dr. Robert-Philippe F. Dollfus (1887–1976).
Synonym: Scirpearia dollfusi Stiasny, 1938 · unaccepted > superseded combination (original combination)
We would like to express our special thanks to Rino Lubatti (Italy) for the first photo of Ellisella dollfusi, who discovered and photographed the coral on a rock face in Elphinstone Reef, Egypt.
Rino has given us written permission to use his photo, thank you very much!
