Echinoderm fauna of the South China Sea: An inventory and analysis of distribution patterns

Abstract

A comprehensive review and analysis of the literature on echinoderm records for the South China Sea (SCS) indicates close to a thousand (982) species in total (113 crinoids, 227 asteroids, 272 ophiuroids, 167 echinoids and 203 holothuroids). All known SCS species and their distributions are tabulated herein. A total of 178 echinoderms have their type locality in the South China Sea, with 63% of these (12% of the echinofauna overall) currently considered endemic. One possible reason for the prominence of endemics is that the South China Sea became relatively land-locked, repeatedly, during low sea level stands. Large areas of the South China Sea remain relatively unexplored biologically and it is likely that additional records and new taxa await discovery. © National University of Singapore.