A new species of the sea anemone *Megalactis* (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Actiniaria: Actinodendridae) from Taiwan and designation of a neotype for the type species of the genus

Abstract

*Megalactis comatus*, new species, from Taiwan is the third species in this genus of sea anemones with highly branched tentacles. The others are *M. hemprichii* Ehrenberg, 1834, from the Red Sea, and *M. griffithsi* Saville-Kent, 1893, from the Great Barrier Reef. Size of nematocysts from acrospheres and column clearly separate *M. comatus* from the other species of *Megalactis*. One of us (A.A.) observed asexual blastulae in *M. comatus*. This is the first record of asexual reproduction in the genus. Because type specimens of *M. hemprichii* have not been found and the original description cannot be used to distinguish this species from other species of *Megalactis*, we designate a neotype for the type species of the genus, *M. hemprichii* Ehrenberg, 1834. All the specimens of actinodendrids examined lacked basilar muscles; this calls into question the placement of family Actinodendridae among thenarian sea anemones.