| Diagnosis |
Mean live weight, 300 to 800 g; body thickness 0.4 cm. Body cylindrical, flattened ventrally (trivium). Bivium smooth and rigid. Podia on bivium long, slender, conical, and irregularly arranged; podia on trivium more numerous, shorter and irregularly arranged on the radii and interradii; calcareous disc of podia around 400 micrometer in diameter. Mouth ventral, surrounded by 20 short tentacles. Anus nearly dorsal, surrounded by 5 groups of radial papillae. Calcareous ring with large radial pieces and narrow interradials having sharp tops. Cuvierian tubules long and large. Variable color among specimens and localities; bivium beige to light brown, showing characteristic brown spots; trivium lighter, yellowish. Spicules on ventral tegument with simple nodules with or without holes and sparse rods giving rise to rosettes; dorsal tegument with rosettes and small biscuit-like plates; ventral podia with variable rods; dorsal podia with x-shaped rods; tops of tentacles with spiny rods. |