New Latrunculiidae (Demospongiae, Poecilosclerida) from the Agulhas ecoregion of temperate southern Africa Samaai, Toufiek Kelly, Michelle Ngwakum, Benedicta Payne, Robyn Teske, Peter R. Janson, Liesl Kerwath, Sven Parker, Denham Gibbons, Mark J. Zootaxa 2020 2020-12-22 4896 3 409 442 86WT6 Samaai, Kelly, Payne Samaai, Kelly, Payne [151,763,976,1003] Demospongiae Latrunculiidae Cyclacanthia Animalia Poecilosclerida 26 435 Porifera species rethahofmeyri  ( Fig. 15B, Tables 6, 7)   Material examined.   HolotypeSAMC-A090895, Amathole region Stn3872, Eastern Cape, 32.950° S, 28.066° E,  40.5 m, RV Ellen Khuzwayo, collected by R. Payne, dredge,  31 Aug 2016.   Paratypes.SAMC-A090896, Amathole region Stn3737, Eastern Cape, 32.751° S, 28,415° E,  31 m, RV Ellen Khuzwayo, collected by R. Payne, dredge,  23 Feb 2016; SAMC-A090897, SAMC-A090898, SAMC-A090899, Amathole region Stn3832, Eastern Cape, 32.759° S, 28.410° E,  45 m, RV Ellen Khuzwayo, collected by R. Payne, dredge,  27 Aug 2016.    Typelocality. Amathole region, off East London, Eastern Cape.   Distribution.Amathole region, off East London, 40.5 m.   Description.Shape varies from either flattened low lying hemispherical (flattened), ranging from 24 mmlong by 24 mmwide by 6 mmthick to hemispherical sponges, 13 mmlong by 34 mmwide by 27 mmthick ( Fig. 15D). Surface undulating but smooth, with volcano-shaped oscules, 5 mmhigh by 3 mmwide at base, 1 mmat apex being closely packed ( 5mmapart), and a few nodular truncate areolate porefields, 3 mmhigh by 3 mmwide, with no poral membrane covering the opening. Texture firm, rubbery and tough. Medium to barely compressible, difficult to tear or break. Colour in life either black, dark green/black or dark brown; in preservative dark green ( Fig. 15D). Green exudate visible, no smell.  Skeleton.The choanosomal skeleton forms an irregular polygonal reticulation formed by wispy tracts of smooth styles ( Fig. 15H). The tracts range in width from 85 –150 μm in thickness, and form meshes that are 195 μm wide. Within the inner choanosome, tracts diverge towards the surface and are 172–205 μm wide. Interstitial spicules are abundant. The ectosome has a palisade of densely packed interlocking anisodiscorhabds, which are absent from the surface structures. The paratangential layer beneath the palisade is approximately 320 μm deep, and this extends into the oscular fistules.  Spicules.Megascleres are anisostyles in one size category: Large, thick, smooth, straight, occasionally sinuous, centrally thickened, narrow proximal region, fusiform: 696 (480–796) × 18 μm. Microscleres are isospinodiscorhabds I ( Fig. 15E, F) with 50% of microscleres either having three or two whorls. In some spicules the median whorl is absent or rudimentary. The manubrium is identical to the apical whorl. The median whorl is equidistant from both apical whorl and manubrium, but smaller and shorter: 49 (38–60) μm. Large isospinodiscorhabds II ( Fig. 15G) with two whorls, 75 (64–88) × 15 (15) μm.   TABLE 7.Comparison of South African  Cyclacanthiaspecies.     Holotype details  Type Locality  Distribution & depth  Morphology  Microsclere morphology  Microsclere I dimensions (µm)  Microsclere II dimensions (µm)  Megasclere dimensions (µm)    Cyclacanthia bellae( Samaai & Kelly, 2003)  NHMUK 2003.1.10.1 Ryi Banks, Algoa Bay, 22 m Port Elizabeth (Algoa Bay) in the Agulhas Ecoregion, habitat moderate profile reefs, rock substrate with patches of sand between rocks, 10–22 m Thinly encrusting, 5 mm high, inflated to 10 mm in situ, emerald green in life, dark chocolate brown in preservative; nodular truncate areolate porefields with poral membrane; volcano-shaped oscules Acanthose isospinorhabds 46 (44–51) 364 (319– 400) × 12    Cyclacanthia cloverlyae Samaai & Kelly, 2004  SAM H-5080 Umhlali, Tugela Banks, 17 m Umhlali, Tugela Banks, 17 m, Natal Ecoregion, low rocky profile, rock substrate, 17 m Thinly encrusting, 3 mm high, olive green in life, dark green in preservative; nodular truncate areolate porefields with no poral membrane; volcano-shaped oscules Smooth isospinorhabd 32 (25–44) 321 (273– 370) × 5    Cyclacanthia mzimayiensis Samaai & Kelly, 2004  SAM H-5082 Mzimayi reef, Sizela, south of Durban, 29 m Sizela & Aliwal shoal, South Durban in Natal Ecoregion, habitat low profile reef, rock substrate, to Amathole offshore region in the Agulhas Ecoregion, habitat low profile reefs, rock substrate, 18–22 Thickly encrusting, 2–3 cm high, lime green in life, dark green in preservative; low volcano-shaped oscules; nodular truncate areolate porefields with poral membrane Smooth isospinorhabds 39 (30–48) 268 (182– 363) × 5    Cyclacanthia rethahofmeyri  sp. nov.  SAMC-A090895 Amathole offshore region, 45 m Amathole offshore region in the Agulhas Ecoregion, habitat low profile, 1 m relief rocky bottom with areas of sand, 31–45 m Thickly encrusting, 6 mm high, dark green/black or dark brown in life, dark green in preservative; nodular truncate areolate porefields with poral membrane; volcano-shaped oscules Acanthose isochiadiscorhabds three whorls of cylindrical, conical tubercles; sometimes partial whorls or even 4 whorled. 49 (38–60) 75 (64–88) × 15 (15) 696 (480– 796) × 18  Substratum, depth range and ecology.  Occursoff East London, Amathole regionat a depth range of  30–42 m.  DNA sequence data. Wesequenced partial COI of collected material from different localities; GenBank accession numbers: COI  MK153269–  MK153271;  MK016476.   Etymology.The species name  rethahofmeyriis given in memory of Emeritus Professor Dr Retha Hofmeyr who joined the Zoology Department at the University of Western Capein 1974 and served as Head of Department from 1991 to 1992 before she passed away in 2020. Retha will always be cherished and remembered for her kindness and encouragement of her students and staff.   Remarks.  Cyclacanthia rethahofmeyri  sp. nov.have acanthose isospinodiscorhabds as microscleres ( Fig. 14) and conforms to the general skeletal characteristics of the genus. The examination of this material revealed the presence of a second category of large isospinodiscorhabds ( Fig. 15G, aspicule not present in any other  Cyclacanthiaspecies described to date ( Samaai et al. 2004). The definition of  Cyclacanthiahas been expanded to include species with a 2 ndcategory of isospinorhabds. The COI sequences of the  Cyclacanthiaspecimens was clearly separated from  Tsitsikammaand formed one, strongly supported phylogenetic cluster characterised by a single distinct haplotype ( Fig. 6). Table 7highlights the morphological characters of the different  Cyclacanthiaspecies and figure 14 shows the different typesof isospinodiscorhabds. The family Latrunculiidaeis monophyletic as indicated by the COI phylogeny ( Fig. 6). 3005534303 2016-08-31 RV Ellen Khuzwayo & R. Payne 41 -32.95 Stn 72 28.066 Amathole region 26 435 1 Eastern Cape holotype 3005534353 2016-02-23 RV Ellen Khuzwayo & R. Payne 31 -32.751 Stn 72 28.415 Amathole region 26 435 1 Eastern Cape paratype 3005534351 2016-08-27 RV Ellen Khuzwayo & R. Payne 45 -32.759 Stn 72 28.41 Amathole region 26 435 1 Eastern Cape paratype 3005534308 [199,915,1259,1285] East London Amathole region 26 435 1 Eastern Cape holotype 3005534320 Amathole region 36 Occurs East London 28 437 1 3005534369 MK153269 [371,503,258,285] 28 437 1 3005534366 MK153271 [518,647,258,285] 28 437 1 3005534321 MK016476 [658,792,259,285] 28 437 1