Study of several asteroid collections made with the aid of SCUBA and bottom trawls in the waters off British Columbia has resulted in new information about the geographic and bathymetric ranges of 20 species. Specimens of 10 species extend the known distribution northward into British Columbia waters. Specimens of three species document southward extensions. The known minimum depth is extended for 11 species, whereas the known maximum depth of four species is extended.

KEY INDEX WORDS: Asteroidea, bathymetric range, British Columbia, geographic range, northeast Pacific.

Since the early monographs of Fisher ( 1911, 1928, 1930) and Verrill (1914), little new data have been published on the distribution of asteroids on Canada's West Coast. When studying asteroids of the U.S.S.R. seas, D'yakonov (1950) included species that ranged as far as the West Coast of North America. More recently, Grainger (1966) reported on seastars from arctic North America, Hopkins and Crozier (1966) listed asteroids from southern California, and Alton (1966) added new distributional data during studies off the mouth of the Columbia River. Mauzey, Birkeland, and Dayton (1968) also added new bathymdtric ranges during their behavioural studies of asteroids in the Puget Sound region. During my preparation of an identification hand book for asteroids in British Columbia waters, several noteworthy collections yielding new distributional data were examined. This paper describes the most significant of these records. The - collections studied were from the British Columbia Provincial Museum (BCPM), the Pacific Biological Station (FRB) at Nanaimo, British Columbia, the Pacific Environment Institute (PEI) West Vancouver, British Columbia, and the National Museum of Canada (NMC).

All identifications were based on the monograpbs and papers mentioned above. In addition, specimens of Freyellaster fecundus, Henricia aspera, and Pectinaster agassizi evoplus were obtained from the U.S. National Museum to aid in identifications.

In the following list, species are arranged alphabetically. Each account includes those specimens occurring outside the previous known range, or within a large gap in the distribution records and a summary of the previous and new distributions. Specimens from BCPM and NMC are identified by catalogue numbers. FRB numbers refer to field collections which will eventually be catalogued and housed at the BCPM.

Previously known from Tres Marias Islands, Mexico, to Washington (47*29.5'N, 125*43.0'W), 507 to 1236 m (Fisher 1928). The specimen from Vancouver Island (5 1 *09.O'N, 130'09.0'W) extends the known range 500 km northward.

Previously known from Bering Sea to St. Paul Harbour, Kodiak Island, Alaska (57*461N, 152*27W) (Fisher 1911), littoral zone to 186 rn (D'yakonov 1950). The specimen from Race Rocks (48*18'N, 123,36'W) extends the known range 2180 km southward.

See the taxonomy

Ceramasier patagonicus (Sladen 1889) (Goniasteridae) British Columbia: Smith Island, Prince Rupert, 20 in, one specimen (BCPM 341); Work Channel, 29 m, eight specimens (BCPM 974-390-12); Barnard Harbour, Princess Royal Island, 18 m, two specimens (BCPM 976-1035-14); Tasu Sound, Queen Charlotte Islands, 24 m, one specimen (BCPM 976-1043-09); Refuge Cove, West Redondo Island, 27 in, one specimen (BCPM 976-1050-11); Howe Sound, 21 in, one specimen (BCPM 974-5-1), 25 in, one specimen (PEI).

Previously known from Cape Horn, South America to Bering Sea, Alaska, 75 to 245 in (Fisher 1911). Specimens from Barnard Harbour extend the known minimum depth to 18 m.

British Columbia: off Cape Flattery, 1353 ni, one specimen (FRB 63-184); west coast Vancouver Island, 1830 in, one specimen (FRB 63-202).

Previously known only from type locality off the Queen Charlotte Islands (52139.5'N, 132138.01W) 2 894 m. The specimen from Cape Flattery (48o 38.5'N, 126'44.5V) extends the known range 650 kin southward and the known minimum depth to 13 5 3 m.

British Columbia: west side of Queen Charlotte Islands, 1061 m, one specimen (FRB 71-42).

Previously known only from Santa Cruz Island, California (34*N, 120*W), 487 in (Fisher 1911). This specimen extends the known range 2350 km north to the Queen Charlotte Islands (53*11N, 132' 55'W) and the known maximum depth to 1 061 in.

British Columbia: off Barkley Sound, 1 353 in, one specimen (FRB 63-184), 461 in, one specimen (FRB 63-185); Cape St. James, Queen Charlotte Islands, 1830 in, three specimens (FRB 65-46), 1032 in, one specimen (FBR 71-38); off Skidegate, Q.C.I. 1 190 m, two specimens (FRB 65-66).

Previously known from San Diego, California, to Washington (471271N, 1241241W) 549 to 1 463 in (Fisher 1930); Sea of Okhotsk, U.S.S.R. (D'yakonov 1950); Bering Sea, 2 200 m (Baranova 1957); 362 in (Alton 1966). The specimens from Skidegate (53* 01.0'N, 132*55.0'W) extend the known range along the North American West Coast 850 km northward.

British Columbia: off northern Queen Charlotte Islands, 1 100 m, one specimen (FRB 65-72).

Previously known from Monterey Bay, California (37*N, 122*W) 1380 to 1942 m (Fisher 1928). This specimen extends the known range 2 200 km north to the Queen Charlotte Islands (54*03'N, 134* 00'W) and "tends the known minimum depth to 1 100 m.

This specimen was compared with the type spec~ men from the U.S. National Museum. There were some minor differences in the number of pedicellariat on the adambulacral spines, the finer appearance of the spines themselves, and the sharper abactinal spines,

, two spec mens (FRB 1964-2), 6 rn, one specimen (BCPM 9

15), 24 in, one specimen (BCPM 976-1073-13), 18 R one specimen (BCPM 976-1051-14); Lasqueti Island Georgia Strait, 27 in, one specimen (BCPM 976-10 - 14); Tasu Sound, Queen Charlotte Islands, 34 in, one specimen (BCPM 976-1078-21); Houston Stewart Channel, Q.C.l., 27 in, one specimen (FRB 62-26). .

Previously known from Santa Barbara Channel, California, to the Bering Sea, 48 to 572 m (Fisher 1930); northern Oregon coast, 896 to 904 m (AIton 1966); Sea of Japan (Dyakonov 1950). One sped. men from Barkley Sound extends the known minimum depth to 6 m.

British Columbia: La Perouse Bank off Vancouver Island, 165 m, one specimen (BCPM 240); Bute Inlet, 280 in, one specimen (PEI); Queen Charlotte Sound, 128 m, one specimen (FRB 63-25).

Previously known from Santa Barbara Island, Cati~ fornia, and Shumagin Islands, Bering Sea, 325 to 1097 in (Fisher 1930). The specimen from Queen Charlotte Sound extends the known minimum deptli to 128 m and afl the specimens help fill in the gap between California and the Bering Sea.

Washington: Cape Flattery, 951 in, six specimens (FRB 68-29). British Columbia: northwest tip of Queen Charlotte Islands, 1 100 m, one specimen (FRB 65-72); off west coast of Q.C.l., 1204 in, three specimens (FRB 71-45), 1061 in, one specimen (FRB 71-42); Cape St. James, Q.C.I., 1230 in, one specimen (FRB 1972-S-34), 1061 rn, four specimens (FRB 71-39); off northern tip of Vancouver Island, 858 ni, one specimen (FRB 63-214); Bute Inlet, 300 in, one specimen (PEI); west coast Vancouver Island, 2 200 in, one specimen (FRB 63-200), 1 353 in, one specimen (FRB 63-184), 360 m, two specimens (FRE 68-35).

Previously known from southern California to Sea Lion Rock, Washington (47'27'N, 124*24'W), 413 to 1550 m (Fisher 1911). The specimen from the northwest tip of the Queen Charlotte Islands (54'03'N, 134100'W) extends the known range 1000 km north. ward. One specimen from off Vancouver Island extends the known maximum depth to 2 200 m and the specimen from Bute Inlet extends the known minimum depth to 300 m.

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(insert miussed type references here)

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LAMBERT: NORTHEAST PACIFIC ASTEROIDS

Leplychaster anomalus Fisher, 1906 (Astropectinidae)

British Columbia: northwest tip of Vancouver Island, 197 m, one specimen (FRB 63-205); La Perouse Bank, Vancouver Island, 436 m, two specimens (FRB 68-45); Swiftsure Bank, 183 m, one specimen (FRB 63-169); off Tofino, 201 m, one specimen (FRB 1962 drag 29); Queen Charlotte Sound, 203 m, one specimen (BCPM 973-198-9).

previously known from the Bering Sea to southeast Alaska and on Asiatic side to the Sea of Japan, 59 to 1258 m in northern part of range (Fisher 1911 ). one specimen previously recorded off Monterey was reidentified as Leptychaster inermis in Fisher (1930). The specimen from Swiftsure Bank extends the known range 1 150 km south of Sitka Sound.

Washington: off Cape Flattery, 360 m, one specimen (FRB 68-35). British Columbia: Halibut Bank, Strait of Georgia, 73 m, three specimens (FRB 191777); Bowen Island, Howe Sound, 10 m, one specimen (PEI); Departure Bay, Vancouver Island, 46 m, one specimen (FRB 1919-94); Jervis Inlet, 81 m, one specimen (FRB 1962 drag #17).

Previously known from southern part of Bering Sea to Vancouver Island, 102 to 435 m (Fisher 1911). Alton (1966) points out a contradiction between this species type locality stated in Fisher (1911) and the label on the type specimen. The former indicates northern Vancouver Island as type locality, the latter indicates southern California. If the type specimen label is in error, then the specimen off Cape Flattery extends the known distribution southward. In any case, the specimen from Bowen Island extends the known minimum depth to 10 m.

British Columbia: Prideaux Island, Barkley Sound, 21 M, three specimens (BCPM 973-244-13N); Sechart Channel, Barkley Sound, 21 m, one specimen (BCPM 973-245-3N); Taylor Islet, Barkley Sound, 21 m, one specimen (BCPM 976-1045-3).

Including the subspecies L. furcilliger vexator, this species previously known from southern Bering Sea to southern California, and the Galapagos Islands, 137 to 2 000 m (Fisher 1911); Bering and Okhotsk seas, Sea of Japan (D'yakonov 1950). The specimen from Sechart Channel extends the known minimum depth to 21 m.

The status of the subspecies is in some doubt. Both Fisher (1911) and D'yakonov (1950) express the view that L. furcilliger vexator is probably a link between the arctic L. furcifer and L. furcilliger in the deeper waters of the eastern Pacific. It is not a geographically isolated subspecies, but appears to be a shallow water variation.

British Columbia: off Kyuquot Sound, Vancouver Island, 2 200 m, one specimen (FRB 63-200); northwest of Queen Charlotte Islands, 1 100 m, one specimen (FRB 65-72).

Previously known from off southern California, 1 800 to 1 937 m (Fisher 1930), and off northern Oregon (45'42'N, 125*13'W) (Alton 1966). The specimen collected off the Queen Charlotte Islands (54'10'N, 134'0.0'W) extends the known range 1 100 km northward and the maximum recorded depth is extended to 2 200 m by the Kyuquot Sound specimen.

These British Columbia specimens were compared with a U~ specimen identified by Miles Allon. They differed from the species description by Fisher in having no pectinate pedicellariae on the abactinal surface, otherwise they compared favourably. The USNM specimen had fewer pedicellariac in the interradial area and on intermediate plates than the two FRB specimens.

British Columbia: Quatsino, Sound, Vancouver Island, 30 m, one specimen (PEI); Tasu Sound, Queen Charlotte Islands, 24 m, two specimens (BCPM 9761043), 27 m, one specimen (BCPM 976-1077-16); Shields Bay, Q.C.I., 18 m, one specimen (BCPM 9761041-15); Frederick Island, Q.C.I., 11 m, one specimen (FRB 62-34); Hecate Strait, 30 m, one specimen (FRB 60-308).

Previously known from California to Hecata Bank, Oregon (46'06'N, 124,39,W), 48 to 291 m (Fisher 1911); northern Oregon, 366 m (Alton 1966); northern Japan and Moneron Island, U.S.S.R. (D'yakonov 1950); California, 40 m (Hopkins and Crozier 1966). The specimen from Hecate Strait (53*28.6'N, 131* 15.1'W) extends the known range on the West Coast of North America 1 100 km northward and the specimen from Frederick Island extends the minimum depth to I I m.

British Columbia: La Perouse Bank off Vancouver Island, 165 m, one specimen (BCPM 240). Alaska: Kodiak Island, 231 m, one specimen (FRB 63-129), 128 m, one specimen (FRB 63-136).

Previously known from northern lower California to Washington, (47*27'N, 124*24'W), 486 to 1800 m (Fisher 1911). One of the specimens from Kodiak Island (56'43'N, 153*07'W), FRB-136, extends the known range 2 000 km northward and extends the known minimum depth to 128 m. Because the specimens from Kodiak Island were dried, it was difficult to differentiate between P. jordani and a closely related species, P. marsippus Fisher, 1910. The presence of calcareous deposits in the supradorsal membrane of Pteraster jordani was the only character that could be utilized. Drying the specimens obscured two other characters that Alton (1966) used to differentiate these species.

Washington. off Cape Flattery, 360 m, five specimens (FRB 68-35). British Columbia: off west coast of Vancouver Island, 285 m, two specimens (FRB 68-47).

Previously known from California, 379 to 675 In (Fisher 1928); northern Oregon (46'06'N, 124'29'W), 134 to 457 m (Alton 1966). The specimens from Vancouver Island (48'47'N, 126*31'W) extend the known range 300 km north of the Columbia River mouth.

Washington: off Cape Flattery, 653 m, two specimens (FRB 68-23). British Columbia: Swiftsure Bank off Vancouver Island, 55 In, one specimen (BCPM 95); Rivers Inlet, 11 In, one specimen (BCPM 976-1031-16); Queen Charlotte Sound, 278 m, one specimen (BCPM 973-200-11). Alaska: Gulf of Alaska, 241 In, one specimen (FRB 63-53).

Previously known from south of Yokohama, Japan, to the Bering Sea and south to Kodiak Island, Alaska, 102 to 640 rn (Fisher 1911); off northern Oregon (Alton 1966); 80 to 640 In (D'yakonov 1950). The specimens collected in British Columbia help to bridge the gap in the known distribution between Kodiak Island, Alaska, and Oregon. The specimen from Rivers Inlet extends the known minimum depth to 11 m.

Washington: off Cape Flattery, 924 In, two specimens (FRB 63-175). British Columbia: off Skidegate, Queen Charlotte Islands, 2 100 m, five, specimens (FRB 66-77).

Previously known from off Indian Point, Behm Canal, Alaska, 198 to 439 m (Fisher 1930); off the northern Oregon coast, 896 to 904 rn (Alton 1966). Specimens from Skidegate extend the maximum depth range to 2 100 rn. These are the first records for British Columbia waters.

British Columbia: off Barkley Sound, 1353 m, four specimens (FRB 63-184), 1061 m, four specimens (FRB 68-31); Cape St. James, Queen Charlotte Islands, 1 230 m, one specimen (FRB 72-S-34); off Skidegate, Q.C.I., 1061 m, 12 specimens (FRB 71-42), 1 190 In, 13 specimens (FRB 65-66), 1000 m, two specimens (FRB 65-68).

Previously known from southern California to Washington (47*26'N, 125*42'W), 395 to 1390 In (Fisher 1930); off Oregon, 1491 In (Alton 1966). Specimens from Skidegate, Q.C.I. (53*01.0'N, 132' 55.0'W), extend the known range 850 krn northward.

I wish to thank Drs. Neil Bourne and D. Quayle of the Pacific Biological Station, ~ Nanaimo, for the loan of the Fisheries Research Board asteroid collection; Neil McDaniel, I cific Environment Institute, and Dr. R O'Clair, formerly National Museums of Canada for the loan of asteroid material; and Marc Downey, of the U.S. National Museum, for the use of identified and type asteroid material and for her comments on the manuscript.

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D*YAKONov, A. M. 1950. Morskie zvezdy m SSSR. (Sea Stars (Asteroids) of the U.S.! seas. Keys to the fauna of the U.S.S.R., Zo, gical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of U.S.S.R., No. 34). lzdatel'stvo Akademii N SSSR, Moskva-I-enningrad. (Israel Program Transl., Jerusalem, 1968. 158 pp.)

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- 1928. Asteroidea of the north Pacific adjacent waters. Part 2. Forcipulata (Pi U.S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 76, 245 pp.1930. Asteroidea of the north Pacific adjacent waters. Part 3. Forcipulata

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HOPKINS, T. S., and G. F. CROZIER. 1966. Obs( tions on the asteroid ichinoderm fauna occu: in the shallow water of southern Califl (intertidal to 60 m). Bull. South. Calif. A Sci. 65:129~145.

MAUZEY, K. P., C. BIRKELAND, and P. K. DAi 1968. Feeding behaviour of asteroids and e~ responses of their prey in the Puget Sound re Ecology 49:603-619.

VFERRILL, A. E. 1914. Monograph of the st) water starfishes of the North Pacific coast the Arctic Ocean to California. Smithsonian tution, Harriman Alaska Series 14 Pt 1. 4C