Abstract
Introduction: The Gulf of Nicoya is the most important estuary on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Information on the presence of soft corals is scattered in the literature and in museum collections. Objective: To provide a list of soft corals reported for the estuary. Methods: We compiled the literature (2002-2020) and of the specimens deposited at the Museum of Zoology, University of Costa Rica. Results: Thirty species have been reported for the estuary (Clavulariidae, Gorgoniidae and Plexauridae). Most were collected on the eastern coast of the Nicoya Peninsula, and several species were described based on estuary specimens. Conclusion: The 30 species represent 79 % of those reported for Costa Rica. Despite this relatively high percentage, the sampling effort has been modest and other sites within the estuary should be explored.References
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Vargas, J. A. (2016). The Gulf of Nicoya: estuarine ecosystem. In M. Kappelle (Ed.). Costa Rican Ecosystems. (pp. 139-161). University of Chicago Press.
Voorhis, A., Epifanio, C.E., Maurer, D., Dittel, A.I., & Vargas, J.A. (1983). The estuarine character of the Gulf of Nicoya, an embayment on the Pacific coast of Central America. Hydrobiologia, 99, 225-237.
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2003). Octocorals from Costa Rica: The genus Pacifigorgia (Coelenterata: Octocorallia: Gorgoniidae). Zootaxa, 281, 1-60.
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2005). A new species of Leptogorgia (Coelenterata: Octocorallia: Gorgoniidae) from the shallow waters of the eastern Pacific. Zootaxa, 899, 1-11.
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2007). A revision of the genus Leptogorgia Milne Edwards & Haime, 1857 (Coelenterata: Octocorallia: Gorgoniidae) in the eastern Pacific. Zootaxa, 1407, 1-90.
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2011). A revision of the genus Heterogorgia Verrill, 1868 (Coelenterata: Octocorallia: Plexauridae). Zootaxa, 2995, 27-44.
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2015). A revision of the genus Muricea Lamouroux, 1821 (Anthozoa, Octocorallia) in the eastern Pacific. Part I: Eumuricea Verrill, 1869 revisited. ZooKeys, 537, 1-32.
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2016). Corrigenda: Breedy O, Guzman HM (2015) A revision of the genus Muricea Lamouroux, 1821 (Anthozoa, Octocorallia) in the eastern Pacific. Part I: Eumuricea Verrill, 1869 revisited. ZooKeys, 537, 1-32. NO ESTA CITADA EN EL TEXTO
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2018). Revision of the genus Adelogorgia Bayer, 1958 (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Octocorallia) with the description of three new species. Zootaxa, 4369, 327-348.
Breedy, O., & Guzman, H. M. (2020). A revision of the genus Psammogorgia Verrill, 1868 (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Octocorallia) in the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean. ZooKeys, 961, 1-30. Htpps://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.961.54846
Breedy, O., Guzman, H. M., & Vargas, S. (2009). A revision of the genus Eugorgia Verrill, 1868 (Coelenterata: Octocorallia: Gorgoniidae). Zootaxa, 2151, 1-46.
Cortés, J., Enochs, I. C., Sibaja-Cordero, J., Hernández, L., Alvarado, J. J., Breedy, O., Cruz-Barraza, J. A., Esquivel-Garrote, O., Fernández-García, C., Hermosillo, A., Kaiser, K. L., Medina-Rosas, P., Morales-Ramírez, Á., Pacheco, C., Pérez-Matus, A., Reyes-Bonilla, H., Riosmena-Rodríguez, R., Sánchez-Noguera, C., Wieters, E., & Zapata, F. A. (2017). Chapter 7: Marine biodiversity of Eastern Tropical Pacific coral reefs. In P. W. Glynn, D. Manzello, & I. Enochs (Eds.), Coral Reefs of the Eastern Pacific: Persistence and Loss in a Dynamic Environment. Coral Reefs of the World 8. (pp. 203-250). Dordrecht.
Núñez-Flores, M., Solórzano, A., Hernández, C.E., & López-González, P. J. (2019). A latitudinal diversity gradient of shallow-water gorgonians (Cnidaria: Octocorallia: Alcyonaceea) along the Tropical Eastern Pacific Ocean: testing for underlying mechanisms. Marine Biodiversity, 49, 2787-2800. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-019-01006-1
Sánchez, J. A., & Ballesteros, D. (2014). The invasive snowflake coral (Carijaa riisei) in the Tropical Eastern Pacific, Colombia. Revista de Biologia Tropical, 62(Suppl.1), 199-207.
Vargas, J. A. (2016). The Gulf of Nicoya: estuarine ecosystem. In M. Kappelle (Ed.). Costa Rican Ecosystems. (pp. 139-161). University of Chicago Press.
Voorhis, A., Epifanio, C.E., Maurer, D., Dittel, A.I., & Vargas, J.A. (1983). The estuarine character of the Gulf of Nicoya, an embayment on the Pacific coast of Central America. Hydrobiologia, 99, 225-237.

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