Timea Gray, 1867

Mothes, Beatriz, Santos, Cristina P. & De Campos, Maurício A., 2004, Timea bioxyasterina sp. n., a new species from the Northeastern coast of Brazil (Demospongiae, Hadromerida), Zootaxa 443 (1), pp. 1-8 : 1-8

Genus Timea Gray, 1867

Diagnosis: Sponges form very thin crusts on shells or under rock. Tylostyles are arranged in tracts ending as bouquets at the sponge surface where they cause a hispid appearance. Additional tylostyles occur in criss­cross fashion between the tracts. Microscleres are euasters, which are dispersed throughout the tissue, denser at the substrate and toward the surface; and are forming an ectosomal crust ( Rützler, 2002).

Synonymy. Hymedesmia , in part, Bowerbank, 1866: 149; 1874b: 71. Timea Gray, 1867a: 544 . Kotimea De Laubenfels, 1936a: 147 . Halicometes sensu De Laubenfels, 1950a: 99 . Not Halicometes Topsent, 1898: 112 .

Definition. These sponges are thin, colorful (mostly red) crusts with choanosomal tylostyles arranged in vague tracts, ectosomal tylostyles in bouquet arrangement. Euasters occur throughout the body and form a dense layer at the surface. Species are cryptic and are found in shaded habitats of warm­temperate to tropical shallow­water environments ( Rützler, 2002).

Type species. Hymedesmia stellata Bowerbank, 1866 (by monotypy).