Abstract:
This paper on the current knowledge of the marine biodiversity of Costa Rica covers the Phylum Cnidaria. A total of 215 species are reported for Costa Rica. Four of those species are endemic to Cocos Island. The Class Hydrozoa is represented by 69 species in 49 genera. 30 families. and eight orders. The Order Siphonophora is the most diverse with 27 species. Only one genus of the Class Cubozoa and three species of the Class Scyphozoa have been identified, though there are many more species on both coasts. The Class Anthozoa is represensted by 142 species in 77 genera, 26 families, seven orders, and three subclasses. The Order Seleractinia has the most species, 87. Of the 215 Cnidarian species reported here, 87 are from the Caribbean, and 127 from the Pacific. Only one species, Physalia physalis, is common to both coasts of Costa Rica. We possibly know only about half the species of the Phylum Cnidarla present in Costa Rica, based on unidentified specimens and personal observations.
