Haliclona (Soestella)

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 : 83

Haliclona (Soestella) sp.

Material. USNM 1229111 Carrie Bow Cay South reef, lower surface of rock slab, 1 m; K. Ruetzler col. 13 Mar 2009.

External morphology. A cushion of about 15 cm 2 extension, 5 mm thick. Smooth surface interrupted by numerous circular oscula, 1–2.5 mm in diameter. Brittle consistency, cavernous inside. Color in life purplish to brown, white in alcohol.

Skeleton structure. In the ectosome, a loose subisotropical reticulation of spicules; similar but denser in the choanosome, with multispicular, rounded meshes.

Spicules. Curved, fusiform oxeas and similar styles; styles making up 15% of the spicule population: 160–200 x 8–10 (180 x 8) Μm.

Ecology. Cryptic in the shallow back reef, 1 m.

Distribution. So far only known from Belize.

Comments. Color and spicule dimensions are similar to those in Haliclona (Halichoclona) vansoesti but the abundance of styloid modifications among the oxeote spicules clearly separates the two species. The small amount of material of a single specimen available to us makes it unadvisable to establish a new species.