Siphonodictyon xamaycaense Pulitzer-Finali, 1986

Ugalde, Diana, Fernandez, Julio C. C., Gómez, Patricia, Lôbo-Hajdu, Gisele & Simões, Nuno, 2021, An update on the diversity of marine sponges in the southern Gulf of Mexico coral reefs, Zootaxa 5031 (1), pp. 1-112 : 46-47

Siphonodictyon xamaycaense Pulitzer-Finali, 1986

Tables 6, 7; Figs. 40A–E , 45F–G

Synonymy and references: Siphonodictyon xamaycaense Pulitzer-Finali (1986: 164) , Rützler et al. (2014: 89), and Pérez et al. (2017: 10); Aka aff. xamaycaensis Hofman & Kielman (1992: 206) ; Aka xamaycaensis Alcolado & Busutil (2012: 71) .

Type locality. Jamaica .

Material examined. CNPGG-2432, CNPGG-2441, Cabezo reef (19.05861°N, 95.8238°W), 9.7 m depth, coll. Diana Ugalde, 30 August 2018.

Description. Habit erect wih hollow cylinders ( Fig. 45F – G ), with thin and fragile walls, burrowing coral rubble—mucus present. The tube’s length ranges from 1–4 cm, and diameter of 0.5–0.7 cm. The surface is smooth. Oscular opening at the end of the cylinder 2–6 mm. White color in vivo and when preserved in ethanol. The consistency is friable.

Skeleton. The wall’s ectosomal skeleton consists of a well-developed network of primary fibers and secondary fibers: 700–1000/300–700 µm wide. Primary tracts are packed with spicules, 75–300 µm thick. The secondary fibers are two to five spicules thick ( Figs. 40 A–C ).

Spicules. Megascleres: oxeas slightly curved and with uniform size ( Figs. 40D–E ): 100– 126.2 (7.2)–140/7.2– 8.3 (0.7)–9.5 µm.

Distribution. Mexico (current records), Jamaica ( Pulitzer-Finali 1986), other countries in the Caribbean Sea ( Rützler et al. 2014).

Remarks. Siphonodictyon xamaycaense has been recorded only from the Caribbean Sea; thus, our material represents the northernmost record of the species and the GoM’s first record. The specimens examined showed spicule sizes larger than the holotype described by Pulitzer-Finali (1986), 110–125/ 4.5–6 µm. However, other specimens recorded in Colombia ( Hofman & Kielman 1992) have oxeas with similar sizes (120–150/ 6–8 µm). Also, the range in length of cylinders between the Colombian and GoM specimens is similar (1–7 cm) compared with those recorded by Pulitzer-Finali (1986), 8–11 cm length.

Order Poecilosclerida Topsent, 1928

Figures

FIGURE 40. Siphonodictyon xamaycaence Pulitzer-Finali, 1986 (CNPGG-2432), skeleton and spicules: A. tangential section of the skeleton of the ectosomal region with paucispicular reticulation; B. transversal section of the skeleton with multispicular tracts in the choanosomal region; C. tangential section of skeleton from a fistule showing a reticulation with three size mesh; D-E. oxeas. A–C = 500 µm; D–E = 50 µm.

FIGURE 45. In situ photographs of species analyzed in the present study: A. Neopetrosia proxima Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1864 (CNPGG-2264); B. Neopetrosia proxima Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1864 (CNPGG-2376); C. Neopetrosia subtriangularis (Duchassaing, 1850) (CNPGG-2435); D. Petrosia (Petrosia) weinbergi van Soest, 1980 (CNPGG-2434). E. Xestospongia muta (Schmidt, 1870) (CNPGG-2230); F. Siphonodictyon xamaycaense Pulitzer-Finali, 1986 (CNPGG-2441), arrows pointing to fistules; G. Siphonodictyon xamaycaense Pulitzer-Finali, 1986 (CNPGG-2432); H. Clathria (Clathria) foliacea Topsent, 1889 (CNPGG-2172), its stem is covered by algae; I. Clathria (Clathria) gomezae van Soest, 2017 (CNPGG-2231); J. Clathria (Thalysias) venosa (Alcolado, 1984) (CNPGG-2410); K. Clathria (Thalysias) virgultosa (Esper, 1806) (CNPGG-2357). Scale bars, A–K = 1 cm.