General description:
Notoplites harmeri is an erect bryozoan, forming slender tufts arising from a mass of tubes. Colonies are approximately 1 cm tall and off-whitish in colour. The colony is composed of jointed branches, with about 20 autozooids between branching points. Autozooids are elongate, and tapered proximally (closest to the colony origin), with spines arranged on the distal edge.
The species is able to colonise stones and shells. It is found at depths between 75 and 180 m, along with N. jeffreysii in western Norway and similar depths around the Farore Isles. It has not been recorded off British coasts, but may prove to extend south to Shetland and west Scotland.
Taxonomic name: