Shallow-water comatulid crinoids (Echinodermata) from Barbados, West Indies

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Abstract
The shallow-water crinoid fauna of the northwest coast of Barbados consists of six species: Analcidometra armata (Pourtalès), Nemaster discoidea (P. H. Carpenter), Nemaster rubiginosa (Pourtalès), Comactinia echinoptera (J. Müller), Ctenantedon kinziei Meyer, and Tropiometra carinata (Lamarck). Of these, only the first three may be regarded as common. The highest concentrations of crinoids occur along the seaward slope of the bank reef, which parallels the coast. Here the combined densities of crinoids over large areas may reach 1.15/m2, which is comparable with or higher than densities found elsewhere in the Caribbean. The co-occurring Nemaster discoidea and Nemaster rubiginosa exhibit broadly overlapping bathymetric ranges and habitat utilization patterns. Of the more common species, Analcidometra armata alone shows a restricted bathymetric distribution and a unique substrate type (an exposed position on the gorgonian Pseudopterogorgia sp.).

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