SOLENEISCUS INTERMEDIUS SP. NOV.

(FIGS 7, 8; TABLE 3)

Z o o b a n k r e g i s t r a t i o n: u r n: l s i d: z o o b a n k. org:act: C9AE024F-7E3F-4B46-AD5F-A9E6704B59B8.

Diagnosis: Soleneiscus that grows in the form of ramified tubes at the base and whose skeleton is composed of diactines, rare triactines located only at the oscular region and two types of tetractines. The diactines are thin, maximum thickness of 7.5 µm.

Etymology: From Latin intermedium, meaning intermediate, in between, for the close morphological similarity with other species.

Type locality: Portail Caves, La Réunion, Indian Ocean .

Ty p e m a t e r i a l: H o l o t y p e – U F R J P O R 8 9 3 3 (= 171110 ESB2 TP6). Portail Caves, La Réunion, Indian Ocean, coll. T. Pérez, 10 November 2017, 18– 20 m depth .

Colour: Sponge light yellow in life and white in ethanol (Fig. 7A, B).

Morphology and anatomy: Cormus formed by ramified and erect tubes, ending in a single osculum without a crown (Fig. 7A, B). Surface hispid due to the presence of diactines lying perpendicular to the surface (Fig. 7B). The lumen of the tubes is also hispid due to the long apical actines of the tetractines (Fig. 7C, D). Aquiferous system asconoid. Skeleton composed of diactines, two size categories of tetractines, and rare triactines (Fig. 8).