Cacospongia bakusi, Sim & Lee & Kim, 2016

Sim, Chung Ja, Lee, Kyung Jin & Kim, Young A, 2016, Twelve new species of two genera Smenospongia and Cacospongia (Demospongia: Dictyoceratida: Thorectidae) from Korea, Journal of Species Research 5 (1), pp. 31-48 : 43-44

11. Cacospongia bakusi n. sp. ( Fig. 11 )

Type specimen. Holotype ( NIBRIV0000321375 ), Korea: Jeollanam-do, Shinan-gun, Heuksan-myeon, Gageodo

Island (Baganyeo), 27 Jul 2005, Lee KJ, by SCUBA diving, Depth 20 m, deposited in the NIBR.

Description. Round mass, size up to 6 × 5 × 2 cm. Surface honeycomb pattern with sharp conules. Several oscules, 1-4 mm in diameter, open at surface of sponge. Colour in life, black on surface and beige inside, not changed in spirit. Texture, sponge and compressible.

Skeleton: Primary fibres, 150-230 μm in diameter, regularly arranged, lightly fasciculated, heavily cored with spicules and rare sands. Secondary fibres, 100 μm in diameter, regularly arranged, and made large meshes, 800- 1000 μm in diameter. Very rare thin secondary fibres, 20-30 μm in diameter, connected with primary fibres.

Etymology. The specific name, bakusi , is named for the late Dr. Gerald J. Bakus who was a professor in the department of biological sciences, University of Southern California, a marine ecologist and sponge taxonomist.

Remark. This new species is similar to Cacospongia sysbiotica Burton, 1959 in cored with spicules in primary fibres, but differs in diameter of fibres. Fibres of this new species has thicker than Burton’s specimen, also colour is different.

Figures

Fig. 11. Cacospongia bakusi n. sp. A, entire animal; B, closed surface; C, surface skeletal structure; D, choanosome skeletal structure; E, F, closed primary fibres. Scale bars: A=2 cm, C, D=200 μm, E, F=100μm.