Agelas mauritiana var. oxeata Lévi, 1961

Van Soest, Rob W. M., 2024, Correcting sponge names: nomenclatural update of lower taxa level Porifera, Zootaxa 5398 (1), pp. 1-122 : 64

Agelas mauritiana var. oxeata Lévi, 1961

Agelas mauritiana var. oxeata Lévi, 1961a: 22 (no illustration);? Thomas 1998: 151, figs. 1e–g.

? Agelas oxeata; Samaai, Pillay & Janson 2019: 54 , fig. 23.

The variety was described by Lévi from Aldabra, Seychelles, approximate coordinates 9.4°S 46.2167°E, depth 12 m (tpe material presumably in MNHN), differing from the typical variety, which was also reported from Aldabra by Lévi (1961a), by a predominance of oxeote verticillate spicules. The typical variety, Ectyon mauritianus Carter (1883: 310, currently Agelas mauritiana ) is described from Mauritius, approximate coordinates 20.1333°S 57.8°E (type slide BMNH 1954.3.9.116). The present variety was also reported from Papua New Guinea by Thomas (1998).

Samaai et al. 2019 elevated the varietal combination to species level as Agelas oxeata , but they overlooked the fact that the variety was described after 1960 and elevating it to species level violates ICZN art. 15.2 and 45.6.3. Since they described their A. oxeata extensively, this is here adopted as a new species authored by them (ICZN art. 45.5.1). However, there are doubts because Lévi’s specimen was quite small 2 x 0.8 cm, wheras Samaai et al. ’s specimens are large cups or vases of 55 x 40 cm. They did not examine Lévi’s specimen. It is quite possible that A. mauritiana var. oxeata sensu Lévi and A. oxeata sensu Samaai et al. are different species. Nevertheless, I propose to confirm Samaai et al.’s authorship for the time being and reassign the variety to Agelas oxeata Samaai, Pillay & Janson, 2019 , with type material and type locality taken from Lévi’s specimen.