Title: Octocorallia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa) from Brazilian reefs
Abstract: Brazilian reef octocorals have been relatively poorly studied. The last major review was published in the early 1960s by F.M. Bayer. The current study includes a full historical and literature review of Brazilian reef octocorals and lists 17 species. Four new species are described: Muriceopsis metaclados, Leptogorgia pseudogracilis, Stephanogorgia rattoi and Trichogorgia brasiliensis. Two new synonyms are proposed: Olindagorgia gracilis (Verrill, 1868) with Olindagorgia marcgravii (Bayer, 1961 Bayer, FM. 1961. The shallow-water Octocorallia of the West Indian region. A manual for marine biologists. Uitgaven: Natuurwetenchappelijke Studiekring voor Suriname en de Nederlandse Antillen., 23: 1–373. [Google Scholar]), and Ellisella elongata (Pallas, 1766 Pallas, PS. 1766. Elenchus zoophytorum sistens generum adumbrationes generaliores et specierum cognitarum succinctas descriptiones cum selectis auctorum synonymis (Hagae Comitum)., [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) with Ellisella barbadensis (Duchassaing and Michelotti, 1864 Duchassaing, P and Michelotti, J. 1864. Mémoire sur les coralliaires des Antilles. Mem R Accad Sci Torino., 23(2): 97–206. [Google Scholar]). Current knowledge on Muriceopsis is included, but the Muriceopsis sulphurea complex needs a thorough revision. Whenever there is not a recent evaluation of a species, it is fully described and illustrated, its main synonymies are included, and distributional ranges are indicated. An identification key is provided.