2010a) Zoanthids of the Cape Verde Islands and their symbionts: previously unexamined diversity in the Northeastern Atlantic. Contributions to Zoology 79

The marine invertebrate fauna of the Cape Verde Islands con-tains many endemic species due to their isolated location in the eastern Atlantic, yet research has not been conducted on most taxa here. One such group are the zoanthids or mat anemones, an order of benthic cnidarians (Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) com-mon in many marine environments. In this study, the diversity of zoanthids in the Cape Verde Islands is specifically examined for the first time. Field images and sampling are combined with molecular phylogenetic analyses utilizing two mitochondrial DNA markers (cytochrome oxidase subunit I and 16S ribos-omal DNA) to determine the number of species present. Speci-mens from eight species (Palythoa caribaeorum, Palythoa sp. 265, Zoanthus aff. pulchellus, Isaurus tuberculatus, Parazoan