Revision of Antipatharia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa): establishment of the new family Pteridopathidae

Recent phylogenomic studies have indicated that Aphanipathidae is not monophyletic, necessitating a reassessment of familial boundaries and generic placement within Antipatharia. Here, we aim to revise Aphanipathidae using an integrated phylogenomic and morphological framework. A new family of black corals, Pteridopathidae fam. nov. (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Antipatharia), is established for five genera (Pteridopathes, Elatopathes, Tetrapathes, Distichopathes and Asteriopathes) formerly referred to the family Aphanipathidae. The new family is recognized based on ultraconserved-element molecular data, forming a monophyletic group sister to Stylopathidae + Myriopathidae, with the remaining examined Aphanipathidae species forming four distinct lineages, two within Antipathidae, one sister group to Antipathidae and one sister group to all families excluding Leiopathidae. Morphologically, all species in the new family are pinnulate, have tubercles on the surface of their spines, and polypar spines are subequal or anisomorphic (unequal heights around locations where polyps occur), which together are unlike all nominal families in the order. Prior to this taxonomic revision, Aphanipathidae was the only family that included both pinnulate and not-pinnulate species. In this revision, the new family gathers all the pinnulate genera formerly referred to Aphanipathidae; and we emend the Aphanipathidae diagnosis to include species that are strictly not-pinnulate. This revision helps resolve the paraphyletic relationship of Aphanipathidae with respect to other antipatharian families, and provides a phylogenetically informed framework for future revisions. ZooBank: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:B4CBFA3B-C2E0-4B5A-BB67-730D628616F4.