Zoological Catalogue of Australia Volume 34

Hemichordata, Tunicata, Cephalochordata

Australia, with its continental coastline and offshore territories, has responsibility for vast marine areas that range from Antarctic to tropical waters. These waters support a megadiverse fauna, including many taxa unique to Australia and of critical importance to marine food chains and thus to commercial fisheries.

This volume catalogues the acorn worms and pterobranchs, the sea squirts, salps and larvaceans, and the lancelets. The Catalogue will be a valuable, worldwide resource for anyone needing information on these groups.

The hemichordates are a fascinating marine group normally encountered in the sand or mud of the intertidal and shallow water zones. The tunicates are an important component of the reef and rocky shoreline fauna and this work highlights their high diversity in Australian waters. They are becoming increasingly important for studies in physiology and immunology. The little-known lancelets are mucous filter-feeders and are found in the coastal seas and bays around the Australian continent.