A New Species of Ophiura (Echinodermata, Ophiuroidea) from Miocene Deep-Sea Deposits in the Pohang Basin, Korea

Dense aggregations of articulated ophiuroids, in external mould preservation, were discovered in the middle Miocene Duho Formation (Yeonil Group) of Pohang City, near the southeast coast of Korea. These specimens are here described as a new species, Ophiura pohangensis, which differs from congeners in having long, slender oral papillae, and tiny quadrangular arm comb papillae. The new species constitutes the first well-identified example of the class Ophiuroidea in the fossil record of Korea. Aggregation density of the new species is similar to that of occurrences of both fossil and extant Ophiura sarsii sarsii across Japan.