Ancorina buldira

Lehnert, Helmut & Stone, Robert P., 2014, Aleutian Ancorinidae (Porifera, Astrophorida): Description of three new species from the genera Stelletta and Ancorina, Zootaxa 3826 (2), pp. 341-355 : 353-354

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.3826.2.4
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:B70EC0BF-310D-43A6-90F1-7124BF39294D
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5690539
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03F087A0-FFC3-FF80-248E-F8CEFC5C701C
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Ancorina buldira
status

Treatment

Ancorina buldira n. sp

( Fig. 4 View FIGURE 4 A – F )

Material examined. Holotype, ZSM 20140113, in three pieces: large and small fragment dried and small fragment in ethanol, collected by Jim Stark with a research survey bottom trawl from the FV Ocean Explorer; 26 July 2012, 234 m depth, 34 km WSW of Buldir Island, western Aleutian Islands, North Pacific Ocean (52°17.16” N, 175°21.48” E). Probably attached to a mass of sand and pebbles. Bottom water temperature = 3.7 °C.

Description. Large, massive, light brown coloured sponge (in life), dimensions 23 cm x 18 cm x 6.5 cm ( Figs. 4A–B View FIGURE 4 A – F ). Hard, only slightly elastic consistency. Habitus similar to Geodia starki Lehnert et al., 2013 . In sections perpendicular to the surface, there is a whitish collagenous cortex, 500–800 µm in thickness and up to 15 mm below the surface ( Fig. 4B View FIGURE 4 A – F ). Polyspicular tracts of megascleres radiate through the cortex, 800–1100 µm in diameter in the cortex and fanning out to form a dense spicule brush ( Fig. 4B View FIGURE 4 A – F ). Right below the cortex and between the polyspicular tracts oval-shaped canals are visible, 400 x 800 µm in diameter at intervals of approximately 1 mm. A reddish brown to dark brown choanosome, where the arrangement of spicule tracts becomes more irregular, is visible below the oval canals ( Fig. 4B View FIGURE 4 A – F ). Spicules are long, abundant plagiotriaenes ( Fig. 4C View FIGURE 4 A – F ), straight rhabds up to 8000 x 180 µm, more rare protriaenes ( Fig. 4F View FIGURE 4 A – F ), anatriaenes ( Fig. 4D View FIGURE 4 A – F ), relatively small but thick dichotriaenes ( Fig. 4E View FIGURE 4 A – F ), straight rhabds, 460–970 x 140–190 µm, cladomes, 225–400 µm per ray. Relatively rare straight oxeas, up to 4520–6460 x 65 –80 µm. Microscleres are finely acanthose oxyasters ( Figs. 4G–H View FIGURE 4 A – F View FIGURE 4 G – L ), 10 µm in diameter and abundant throughout the sponge, finely acanthose sanidasters ( Figs. 4I –J View FIGURE 4 A – F View FIGURE 4 G – L ), 13 µm in longest extension, rhabd is 1.5–2.5 µm in diameter, actins have inflated points due to a concentration of spines there and measure 1.8–2.7 x 0.5–0.7 µm. Finely acanthose plesiasters ( Figs. 4K–L View FIGURE 4 A – F View FIGURE 4 G – L ), 48–72 µm in diameter. Sanidasters and plesiasters are rare; the latter observed just below the cortex.

Discussion. The World Porifera Database lists 14 valid species of Ancorina and none are known to occur in the North Pacific Ocean. The geographically closest congener is Ancorina radix Marenzeller, 1889 which was originally described from the Mediterranean Sea but subsequently recorded from regions of the Northeast Atlantic as far north as eastern Greenland. A. radix was described to be nut-sized, without dichotriaenes, and with much shorter triaenes, described as “Stumpwinkler” and “Spitzwinkler” (p. 16),which are, according to the figure (pl. III, 6a–b), plagiotriaenes (rhabds, 980–2100 x 14–80 µm and clads, 70–238 x 28–40 µm) and longer oxeas (“Umspitzer”, 1980–4620 x 28–70 µm). It also differs considerably from Ancorina buldira n. sp. based on categories of microscleres, possessing two size categories of oxyasters (large 40–80 µm and small 10–18 µm), and possessing smaller sanidasters (10–80 x 2.5–5 µm) and plesiasters.

Etymology. Named after Buldir Island, the island near the locality where the holotype was collected.