Ascidians from the southern Chilean Comau fjord: (Chordata, Ascidiacea)

The benthic communities of the Comau fjord down to 30 m depth were sampled by SCUBA diving. We found twelve species of Ascidiacea belonging to seven different families of which one could only be identified to genus level: Aplidium fuegiense Cunningham, 1871, Aplidium magellanicum Sanamyan & Schories, 2003, Aplidium variabile (Herdman, 1886), Didemnum studeri Hartmeyer, 1911, Lissoclinum aff. caulleryi (Ritter & Forsyth, 1917), Distaplia colligans Sluiter, 1932, Corella eumyota Traustedt, 1882, Alloeocarpa incrustans (Herdman, 1886), Cnemidocarpa nordenskjoldi (Michaelsen, 1898), Pyura sp., Pyura chilensis Molina, 1782 and Paramolgula gregaria (Lesson, 1830). The species are described shortly and documented photographically. An identification key for orders and families to which the collected species belong is provided. The distribution of these species within the fjord Comau is discussed with respect to the fjord's specific conditions.