Xestospongia deweerdtae Lehnert

Rützler, Klaus, Piantoni, Carla, Van, Rob W. M. & Díaz, Cristina, 2014, Diversity of sponges (Porifera) from cryptic habitats on the Belize barrier reef near Carrie Bow Cay, Zootaxa 3805 (1), pp. 1-129 : 91

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.3805.1.1

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:F0B7652D-6E64-44CE-9181-5A10C8D594C7

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3507140

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C23A87C6-FFE9-FF82-FF11-FB7B18A4F835

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Xestospongia deweerdtae Lehnert
status

 

Xestospongia deweerdtae Lehnert View in CoL & van Soest, 1999

Synonymy and references. Xestospongia deweerdtae Lehnert & van Soest, 1999: 163, figs. 44–47; van Soest & de Weerdt (2001): 114; figs 4C, D; 5C, D.

Material. USNM 1229139, Carrie Bow Cay forereef cave, 26 m; M. C. Diaz col. 8 Sep 2009.

External morphology. Encrusting, up to 20 mm thick, covering about 90 cm 2 substratum. Irregularly dispersed oscula, most of them elevated on conical protrusions, 3–5 mm diameter. Surface smooth, consistency firm but crumbly. Color, a milky rose red.

Skeleton structure. An unispicular reticulation of strongyles in the ectosome. A similar reticulation in the choanosome, but complemented by multispicular tracts which also form meshes.

Spicules. All are strongyles, most a bit curved, of similar lengths but two classes of thickness; the thinner ones could be considered as earlier growth stages (Lehnert & van Soest, 1999) although juvenile stages were also identified to be oxeote (van Soest & de Weerdt, 2001). Strongyles I: 280–330 x 11–15 (311 x 13) Μm; strongyles II: 270–340 x 3–9 (308 x 6) Μm; strongyles I and II combined: 270–340 x 3–15 (310 x 10) Μm. No oxeote spicules were found in our preparations.

Ecology. So far found on the open, deep forereef to 82 m and in reef caves at 10– 26 m.

Distribution. Caribbean-wide.

Comments. Our specimen entirely covered another sponge, Plakortis angulospiculatus , adhering tightly to the exopinacoderm of the substratum sponge. A similar situation is also described by Zea et al. (2009), who noted that specimens of Xestospongia deweerdtae are “always living over Plakortis halichondrioides .”

USNM

Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History

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