Abstract
A new record of Leodia sexiesperforata is reported from the coast of Rio Grande do Norte state, northeastern Bra-zil. An updated distribution map based on data collected from literature, museums, and scientific collections is also presented. This new report fills a distribution gap on the coast of northeastern Brazil. Leodia sexiesperforata has a continuous range between the states of Ceara and Alagoas.
Highlights
The Six-holed Keyhole Urchin, Leodia sexiesperforata (Leske, 1778) (Clypeasteroida, Mellitidae), is an irregular Echinoidea with a wide distribution along the coast of the Americas, from eastern North America to Uruguay (Clark 1933, Mooi and Peterson 2000), with records from the United States of America, Mexico, Belize, Bahamas, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Barbados, Venezuela, and Brazil
The Temperate Northern Atlantic shows a predominance of records from the east coast of the United States, Carolinian Ecoregion
In the Tropical Atlantic, the data comes from 2 broad areas divided by an extensive gap
Summary
The Six-holed Keyhole Urchin, Leodia sexiesperforata (Leske, 1778) (Clypeasteroida, Mellitidae), is an irregular Echinoidea with a wide distribution along the coast of the Americas, from eastern North America to Uruguay (Clark 1933, Mooi and Peterson 2000), with records from the United States of America, Mexico, Belize, Bahamas, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Barbados, Venezuela, and Brazil. Clark (1933) stated that this species occurs in Jamaica, Saint Kitts, Martinique, Saint Vincent, and Tobago. Herrera-Moreno and Bitencourt (2013) listed L. sexiesperforata as occurring in Honduras, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Panama, Colombia, and Uruguay. In Brazil, its distribution is widely known, but with some gaps, and has been recorded from the states of Ceará, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Bahia, Espírito Santo, and Rio de Janeiro (Rathbun 1879, Lima-Verde 1969, Alves and Cerqueira 2000, Ventura et al 2006, Gondim et al 2008, Miranda et al 2012). The Brazilian Northeastern Region extends for over 19 degrees in latitude (between 01°02′30′′ N and 18°20′07′′ S), comprising a coastline of approximately 3400 km, and holding a wide variety of coastal environments such as beaches, dunes, cliffs, estuaries, deltas, sandbanks, islands, and coral reefs, among oth-
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