Haliclona (Halichoclona) lernerae sp. nov.

Figs. 3 A–D

Examined material. Holotype MCNPOR 4964, 94 m, 00°35’12”S – 43°20’55”W, 14.VI.1999 (schizoholotype deposited in ZMAPOR 17909).

Material studied for comparison. Haliclona sp., collected by R/V Oregon II, off the mouth of the Amazon river, fragment deposited on MCNPOR 2462 (det. Klaus Rützler).

Description. Massive sponge (Fig. 3 A): 7.5 cm long, 2.7 cm in diameter. Smooth surface, slightly rough to the touch. Choanosomal channels visible, running toward the oscules 0.3­0.6 cm in diameter; oscular projections tube­like, only one remains entire (2.6 x 1.1 cm). Preserved material little compressible, firm consistency, colour creamy white, infested with Hydrozoa.

Skeleton. Ectosome a rather dense, tangential, subisotropic reticulation (Fig. 3 B). Choanosome a rather dense, subisotropic reticulation, with few choanosomal spaces (Fig. 3 C).

Spicules. Oxeas (Figs. 3 D): Thin, slightly curved, some straight; most with acerate ends, but hastate and blunt forms also occurs: 138– 148.3–161 / 1.2– 3. 3 –4.6 µm.

Remarks. For the West Atlantic there are four species of Haliclona belonging to the subgenus Halichoclona, viz. H. albifragilis (Hechtel, 1965); H. magnifica De Weerdt, Rützler & Smith, 1991; H. vansoesti De Weerdt, De Kluijver & Gomez, 1999 and H. stoneae De Weerdt, 2000 . The latter is quite different from the others, by the presence of sigmas and large oxeas; H. albifragilis differs in having thin oxeas, combined with its friable consistency and skeleton without subectosomal spaces; H. magnifica is well characterized by its relatively large size and the presence of tubes and fistules; finally, H. vansoesti possesses a cavernous, purple choanosome, losely covered by the transparent ectosome. Our species bears some features that, in a whole, keep it set apart from the other species: oscules tube­like projections, firm consistency, choanosome with few choanosomal spaces and thin, slightly curved oxeas.

Etymology. The specific name is given in acknowledgement of Dr. Cléa Lerner, belonging to a group of young researchers whose contribute so much for the biodiversity knowledge of marine sponges from Brazil.