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Ophiocomella sexradia

Ophiocomella sexradia

Classification

The marine waters of the Houtman Abrolhos, an island chain off the coast of Western Australia, has been recorded as containing 172 species of echinoderm in ?? genera. This extremely high diversity has been attributed to a combination of factors, namely: the position of the Houtman Abrolhos within a biotone between temperate and tropical waters; the wide variety of habitats; and the Leeuwin Current, which both transports tropical species southwards, and keeps the reef warm enough for them to survive.

Distribution

(c) Thomas Irvine, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY
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Countries in the Picchu catalog
Mexico · 6United States of America · 4France · 3