Abstract: Weizhou Island, located in the central Beibu Gulf, is one of the most important regions for tropical shallow—water coral reef ecosystems in China; however, systematic investigations of gorgonians in this area remain limited. To fill this gap, comprehensive SCUBA-based surveys were conducted in shallow waters (5—20 m) around Weizhou Island from 2023 to 2025, during which 403 gorgonian specimens were collected. Species identification was based on colony morphology, branching patterns, and polyp arrangement, combined with sclerite analyses using light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In total, 2 species belonging to 11 genera and 5 families were confirmed, including two species newly recorded from China, Viminella anomala and Viminella petila. Phylogenetic relationships among the sampled taxa were reconstructed using concatenated nucleotide sequences of 14 mitochondrial protein-coding genes, showing strong concordance between molecular and morphology-based classifications. Detailed morphological descriptions and SEM images of sclerites are provided for the two newly recorded species. In addition, a regional identification key to the gorgonians of Weizhou Island is presented for the first time. This study substantially enriches current knowledge of gorgonian diversity in China and provides baseline data for improving octocoral systematics, elucidating biogeographic patterns in the Beibu Gulf, and supporting future ecological and resource—related studies.

Key words: Weizhou Island, Guangxi；gorgonians；species diversity；taxonomy；newly recorded species