Cirripeds from deep-water coral mounds off S. Maria di Leuca, Apulian Plateau Bank (Mediterranean Sea)

Sampling carried out in the Ionian Sea off S. Maria di Leuca, Apulian Plateau Bank (Mediterranean Sea) provided disarticulated plates of six cirriped species belonging to the superorder Thoracica. They include the benthic species Scalpellum scalpellum (Scalpellomorpha), Balanus amphitrite (Balanomorpha), Verruca romettensis, Metaverruca imbricata and Metaverruca zanclea (Verrucomorpha). S. scalpellum is the unique bathyal species frequently occurring in the Mediterranean, whereas V. romettensis had been cited only one time previously. M. imbricata and M. zanclea are first reported for the Mediterranean, although the latter one is present only in thanatocenoses. Abundant pelagic Lepas pectinata (Lepadomorpha) apparently falling from floating algae, was also obtained. No living specimens were recovered and cirripeds were exclusively found as disarticulated plates within thanatocenoses. All these taxa are briefly described as well as information about their fossil and present-day distribution.